Chaotic Roses
by Vandanalia Heartloca
Summary: Our FFVII's heroes finally settle after Vincent saves the world. Now 2 months have passed. New bonds were made and many people have worked hard doing repairs and building new homes. But of course, that doesn't mean that life is at peace. Who would guess that the mission Vincent and Yuffie undergo would lead to a whole new journey of war and bonds that would change life forever?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I DO NOT OWN any of the FFVII characters in this Fanfiction. Except maybe some future characters. Which I will NOT spoil who they are! You're welcome. (You won't see them until long into the story anyway. Nye hye hehh! :3) So please don't sue me, I am broke Groot! ;-; (I don't own Groot either but I wish I did. Waaahh! T^T) Enjoy the story!

 **Chapter 1**

It's been two months since the savior, Vincent Valentine, had saved the world by defeating Omega using Chaos. This had given the people and our favorite heroes time to relax and settle. Townsfolk volunteered to repair and build new homes for the people who lost them. With that, new relationships were made and bonds were formed amongst them. Tifa continues to work at 7th Heaven. Cid and Barret often hang with each other by getting drunk. Yuffie runs all over the place trying to find a certain stoic savior who decided to hang around Lucrecia's grave. Shelke took to helping take care of Marlene and Denzel, and Cait Sith and Red XIII help the townsfolk with building. Sometimes with the help of Cid and Barret when they aren't busy. Then there's Cloud. Who knows what he's been up to.

He often comes and goes wherever he wants to, and hardly says a word about it. Tifa suspects he's been going on his long drives and helping people whenever he can. Simply because she knows his heart and trusts him. Cloud does often stop by around 7th Heaven to visit, or make a few deliveries, and other times he'll stand before Zack's and Aerith's graves. The townsfolk built her grave right next to Zack's sword. When Cloud visits, he'll set some flowers in front of her grave. Remembering that flowers was how they first met. You'd think life would be peaceful after the world being saved once again. But when _is_ life 'peaceful'?

Cloud returns from a long drive and visits Zack and Aerith's graves. Tifa walks out to take out the trash and spots Cloud's motorcycle next to the doorway. She didn't see him anywhere inside, so she suspected he was at the graves. After taking out the trash, she decides to go check. And there he was. "Cloud!" she calls out to him. He turns to her and she waves. Then she walks over to him as he turns back around to face Zack's sword. Tifa places a hand on his back and slides her other up his arm, then peeks up at his face from around his shoulder with a warm smile. "Are you okay?" she asks him. Cloud says nothing. Tifa sighs and lays her cheek on his shoulder. They remain silent as the breeze blow past. "What do you think things would have been like? If they were still alive?" Cloud suddenly asks. Tifa, taken by surprise looks up at him, then back at the graves, deep in thought about his question. Before she could say anything, Marlene hollers to her that new customers arrived. "I'll be right there!" Tifa replies. She turns back to Cloud and pats him on the back. "Try not to think about it so much. We can't turn back time and change the past. I know they certainly wouldn't want you to keep sulking about them everyday either," she said calmly. She gave him a quick smile and headed back to the bar.

When Tifa got done working, she returned to her room to get cleaned up. When she walked in, she spotted a flower and a note laid in the middle of her bed. She knew right away it was from Cloud. He always left a flower and a note for her when he took off. As always, the note read 'I'll be back soon'. He did it so much she had enough flowers collected to make a large bouquet. Tifa chuckled as she picked up the flower and held it up to her nose to sniff. Meanwhile, a certain mischievous ninja was writing 'Kiss me Cid! My baby!' and 'Love me Barret! My baby!' on Cid's and Barret's faces while they slept. She couldn't stop silently snickering as she did so. The two 'love birds' had once again gotten drunk together and fell asleep right next to each other. After our favorite ninja gets done drawing on their faces, she quickly sneaks off and hides behind a corner. Then she throws small rocks at their faces and hides again, trying to hold back a laugh. You could hear grunting from the two waking up. Yuffie peaks around the corner to see the looks on their faces. Which went from confusion, to surprised, to completely disgusted, they had to scream. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" Barret yells. "THAT'S MY LINE YOU SON OF A BITCH! WHAT ARE YOU!?" Cid yells back. "THE HELL DO YOU MEAN!?" Barret yells back. Yuffie bursts out laughing as hard as possible, she practically cried. The two grossed out men turned to the laughing ninja, realizing she was the culprit. Yuffie, stops after seeing their furious looks, then takes a run for it. Still laughing. "YUUUFFFFIIIIEEE!" they holler after her.

Yuffie keeps on running away from the angry duo who wants payback. She sees Tifa's room door open, so she runs on in and slams the door shut. "What's going on?" a startled Tifa asks. Yuffie tries to catch her breath. "Whoo! Man! I haven't had that much fun in ages!" she huffed. Tifa just gave her a confused look. "I heard them yelling your name from all the way downstairs. Did you do something to make them mad again?" she asks. "HAHAHAHAA! I just played a prank on them, they'll be fine!" Yuffie laughs. "YUFFIE! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!" Barret yells. Tifa sighs and shakes her head. _Typical Yuffie_ , she thought. "Welcome back, Yuffie," she adds with a smirk. Yuffie then notices the flower in Tifa's hand. "Where'd you get that from?" she asks. Tifa smiles. "Cloud. He always leaves me one when he leaves," she said. "Pffftt! You two should just get hitched already! I'm tired of waiting!" Yuffie says as she crosses her arms. Tifa chuckles. "Oh please, Yuffie. You know he's not that kind of person. I'm happy enough just being able to stay by his side. As long as I get to be there for him and remain by his side, I'm happy," she says. Yuffie scoffs. "Oh! By the way, have you heard from Vince? I've been looking for him all over the place this past month," she asks. Tifa had to stop and think. "Now that you mention it...no. I have no idea where he is," she said. "Uuugghhh!" Yuffie sighs frustratedly. "Why does he have to be so discreet and stoic and...gone!?" she pouts. Tifa laughs. "Just give him time. I'm sure he'll show up eventually," she says and she pats Yuffie on the arm before walking out of her room. _He could've at least been like Cloud and leave a note for us_ , Yuffie pouts in thought. Then she leaves the room to head downstairs. She slips on one of the steps and tumbles to the ground, almost ramming into Cait Sith and Red XIII. "Yuffie! Are you alright?" Cait Sith asks. Yuffie rubs the back of her head. "Yeah, I'm fine," she says.

"What are you up to anyway?" Cait Sith asks her. "Trying to look for the black and crimson freak who disappeared on us," Yuffie spouts. "Vincent?" Red XIII asks. "Yeah. Have you guys seen him?" she asks. "I'm afraid we haven't. I'm sorry," said Red XIII. "Man..," Yuffie sighs. "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll turn up soon," said Red XIII, trying to console her. "Pfft! Please! With her trying to stalk him all the time, why _wouldn't_ he stay hidden," said Cait Sith. "Hey! I'm not stalking him!" Yuffie retorts. "Whatever you say _Princess Materia_. I'm just saying. Maybe if you stop looking, he'll show up," says Cait Sith. Yuffie scoffs. Red XIII rolls his eyes. "Kids," he says as he walks off. "Hey!" Yuffie and Cait Sith retort in unison. Tifa giggles. "Yuffie, would you mind delivering this box of drinks for me?" she requests. "Sure! I'm bored to death anyway," Yuffie accepts. "Who's the customer?" she asks. Tifa hands her a piece of paper with the address written on it. "Thanks!" says Yuffie as she takes off.

Meanwhile, Vincent begins walking around town. He pays a visit at 7th Heaven and is greeted by his friends who are shocked to see him. "Vincent!" Cait Sith jumps with joy. "Vincent! Where've you been? Everyone's been worried. Are you alright?" Tifa asks him. "I'm fine..," Vincent replies in his deep and stoic voice. "Where's Cloud?" he asks. "Probably on another one of his drives. That or he's on a mission," said Cait Sith. "Cloud's been doing missions? Since when?" Tifa asks, clearly surprised. "Who knows. All I know is that people have been thankful to him for it," said Cait Sith. Tifa smiles warmly. "Well..at least we know he's doing alright," she said. "Oh! Vincent, have you talked to Yuffie yet? She's been looking for you all this time," said Tifa. "For what?" Vincent asks. "Ask her yourself. And do it ASAP. I'm sick of hearing her whining about it," says Cid, who had just walked in with Barret right behind him. Vincent remains silent as he scans the black writings on their faces, guessing it was Yuffie's doing. _She never changes_ , he thought. "Yo! Vince! Where the hell you been?" Barret asks him. "Hmph. Nothing much," says Vincent as he walks off back into town. Cid sighs. "He never changes," he says.

Vincent had been hanging around Lucrecia's grave. Shelke had sometimes stopped by too. She managed to convince him to go say hi to his friends. Vincent walks through town, and soon catches the eye of a man in need of a fine warrior to take on his mission. "Hey! You there with the crimson cloak!" he calls out to him. Vincent stops and turns to the man. "Over here!" the man waves his arm. Vincent strides over to him and asks what he wants. "Name's Gerald. I'm looking for well trained people to take up this job for me. You interested?" he asks. Yuffie had just finished delivering the drinks to Tifa's customer. When she turned around after receiving thanks, she spotted Vincent conversing with Gerald. "HEYY! VINNIE!" she hollers and quickly runs over to him. Vincent turns to her as she hugs his arm and says hi. Gerald chuckles. "This your girlfriend? She can help you. She looks capable," he says. "Wha-," Yuffie quickly lets go of Vincent's arm out of embarrassment. "I am not!" she says, crossing her arms. Vincent turns back to Gerald. "Sorry, not interested," he says. "Not interested in what? What's going on?" Yuffie questions. "I'm offering a mission to stop to these ZICONs that keep terrorizing cities. Stands for Zombies in Contact of Nighthowlers. No one knows where they came from. Just that they dig up recent corpses, pull out their hearts, and change out their eyes, making them a ZICON. Don't ask me why. I have no clue," Gerald explains. This caught Vincent's attention. "Why didn't you say so in the first place?" he asks. "I was testing your bribing skills. Seems you like full on briefing of information before making a decision. I like that," Gerald compliments. "How can they be stopped?" Yuffie asks. "Dunno. Don't care how. Just want 'em gone. Don't need anymore innocent lives ruined, don't ya think?" says Gerald. Vincent and Yuffie exchange a look. "Why didn't you try to figure it out yourself?" Yuffie asked. "I did. Almost got killed. Me and my buddies as a group went to try to stop them and figure out what's going on. They lost their lives, and almost mine as well. That's why I'm here. To get help," he said. "Oh, man..sorry to hear that," said Yuffie. "What's done is done. Nothing we can do to bring them back," says Gerald.

As painful as it was to admit, he was right. "You up for it?" he asks. Vincent looks thoughtful. "I guess," he responds. Yuffie straightens herself up. "I'm in!" she says boldly. Vincent looks at her with his crimson eyes. "What? I've got nothing to do anyway. Might as well. Besides, I haven't seen you in forever!" Yuffie responds to his questionable glare. Vincent sighs in defeat. "Do as you please," he says. Yuffie beams excitedly. "Well then, looks like it's settled. Last I heard they were on the move somewhere in the far east of Wutai. Might want to take the train. I'll pay you," says Gerald. "Don't need the money," says Vincent as he turns away and walks off. "Just being able to save lives is enough for us," Yuffie winks with a smile. _Maybe I'll find some more materia on the way_ , she thought as she took off after Vincent. Gerald chuckles. "Thanks you two. Looks like my comrades haven't died in vain," Gerald says quietly with a chuckle. Vincent and Yuffie make their way to the train station, off to start their newly acquired mission.

 **A/N:**

Hi guys! That's the first Chapter to Chaotic Roses! What did you think? I hope you liked it so far! Look forward to more incoming chapters. This story is long from over! ^-^


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Vincent and Yuffie are sitting on the train together as is drives on. It would be hours before it was time to get off. "Whoo! Man I'm glad I brought my hooded cloak! It's _freezing_ in here!" a shivering Yuffie complains. Vincent says nothing. He just sits next to her with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. Yuffie looks up at him from underneath her white hood, then slumps her shoulders with puffy cheeks and a frown. Then she grows a mischievous look as she gets an idea and slides her hand over to her pocket. "Touch my face and you're dead," said Vincent, still with his eyes closed. "Tch! You're no fun!" Yuffie pouts and crosses her arms. They sit like that for another couple hours until Yuffie startles Vincent by landing on his shoulder, sleeping soundly. It's then that Vincent is able to get a close look at her face. She looked like a baby. "Hmph," Vincent chuckles, then turns his head and looks out the window behind him. He continues to watch the scenery for many hours until he hears the bell ding that they arrived at their stop. Yuffie was still sound asleep on his shoulder. "Yuffie," he calls, trying to wake her up. "Yuffie," he says again. Then sighs and flicks one of his golden claw fingers on Yuffie's head to wake her up. "Ow!" Yuffie jolts awake and rubs her forehead. "We're here," says Vincent as he gets up and walks off. "Wha-..hey! Wait for me!" a barely conscious Yuffie hops to her feet and drowsily goes after him. Of course, not without bumping into the walls a couple times, then tripping as she gets off the train. "Whoa!" she yelps as she thumps to the ground. "Feel free to stay behind," says Vincent before walking off. "No way! Vince!? Wait up!" Yuffie hollers after him and tries to catch up.

Yuffie lazily drags her feet along complaining about him not letting her wake up all the way, then trips over a large tree root. "Watch your step," said Vincent. "Yeah yeah, I'm awake now," Yuffie says as she stands back up and brushes herself off. Their path becomes long and gloomy. Yuffie tries to stay optimistic, but she couldn't help getting more and more anxious the more she kept thinking about the mission. Not to mention, Vincent was getting annoyed with her loudness, but didn't complain since he understood why she was being that way. Even he had to admit he felt a bit uneasy. They soon come across a small town that looked like it had been destroyed long ago. The dark, cloudy and windy weather didn't help the scenery. "What is this place?" Yuffie asks no one in particular as she looks at her surroundings in awe. "This place is a mess," Yuffie says, then scrunches her nose. "And stinks," she says as he pinches her nose. They look inside worn down and broken buildies, and judging from what was in them, they suspected that they were homes. "I wonder what happened to the people who lived here," says Yuffie. "Who knows?" Vincent responds, then continues walking. He senses that they are being followed and watched by an unknown presence. Yuffie, of course, is completely oblivious to it, with her light skipping and humming of some sort of happy sounding song. Vincent abruptly stops and raises his arm in front of her to make her stop.

"What is it?" Yuffie whispers. She peeks over his arm and looks to the left where Vincent was looking, but couldn't see anything. Vincent however, with his super enhanced vision could see something dark and ugly moving in the shadows. "What are you looking at?" Yuffie asks. Vincent then pushes Yuffie out of the way, dodging a bullet something fired at them. Vincent quickly pulls out his gun and shoots. You could hear a disgusting growl right when Vincent's bullet hit whatever it was. Vincent and Yuffie walk up to whatever it was to see what he had shot. When they got close, a hand suddenly tries to grab Yuffie's ankle, making her yelp and jump back. Vincent quickly shoots the hand, and it goes still. "Ewww! What _is_ that thing?" Yuffie questions, looking at the zombie-like body with disgust. "There's more," says Vincent, sensing more of them lurking around. You could hear their zombie-like growls from all directions. Yuffie turns around to see a bunch of them start to form a large circle. "Uhhh...Vinnie?" Yuffie takes a step back and bumps into Vincent's back. He turns to see that they're surrounded by the zombie-like figures. He walks forward as he observes them, trying to identify what they could possibly be. As he stepped forward with Yuffie following close behind, the zombie-like creatures got closer.

Vincent frowns after inspecting them. "They were..humans," he said. "What?" Yuffie looks at him, then back at the creatures. She notices the clothes that they're wearing. Some looked like regular clothes you'd see townsfolk wearing. Even small ones you'd guess were children. Others wore uniforms of Shinra and SOLDIER. "Shinra? SOLDIER? What happened to these people?" Yuffie questioned with sympathy. Vincent points his gun at one of their heads. "ZICON," he said after he had figured it out. "No way! But..didn't Gerald say they go after recent corpses? Why are they attacking _us_?" Yuffie asks in confusion. "That's only what he concluded based off of what he saw. Looks like they hunt those who are alive too," said Vincent. "Gyuuu!" Yuffie shivers disgustedly at the scary thought. "Let's just get rid of them," says Vincent, then begins shooting. "Right," Yuffie responds as she begins fighting. Slicing their body parts off with each throw of her large Shuriken, but not killing them. "Why aren't they dying?" She questions frustratedly. "They're regenerating. Aim for their heads," says Vincent, still shooting. "Okay!" Yuffie replies and does so.

After minutes and minutes of shooting and slicing, they finally come to a stop. "You think that's all of them," Yuffie asks, trying to catch her breath with her hands on her knees. "Perhaps," Vincent says as he reloads his gun. "Probably would've been easier if we had materia on us," he added. Yuffie then looked as if she had been shocked. " _THAT'S_ WHAT WE WERE MISSING! I _knew_ we were missing something but I couldn't figure out what!" said Yuffie. "Hmph! And to think you're so obsessed with it," Vincent retorted. "Oh give me a break! Who says I can't forget stuff? Ahhh maaannn I can't believe I forgooott," Yuffie falls to her butt on the ground, highly disappointed. "Whining about it isn't going to magically bring it here," says Vincent as he begins walking off. Yuffie scoffs. "Let's go," he says, then Yuffie gets up and follows. "We still have yet to figure out who's behind all this too," Yuffie thought out loud. She and Vincent make their way deep into another forest, and Yuffie suggests they set up camp. Vincent senses no danger around them, so he okays it. Yuffie sleeps close to the campfire, while Vincent relaxes, high up in a tree. He lies on a large tree branch and gazes at the full moon.

Near morning, a ZICON secretly sneaks up on Yuffie, and holds it's knife up high. Then quickly lowers it to stab her, but before it even touches her, Vincent fires a bullet at the knife and it flings out of it's hand. Before the ZICON could turn back around, Vincent quickly kicks it away with touch force. "Yuffie! Get up!" Vincent calls. "Mmmm...whaatt?" Yuffie slowly gathers her consciousness. "ZICON," Vincent answers. That got Yuffie's alarm system up and running fast, so she quickly hops into battle stance. She observes the ZICON that began to surround them, and frowns. "Wait..these uniforms...they're from Wutai!" she says in shock. "Wutai? We must be nearby then," said Vincent. Yuffie begin to fear the worst. "Vince! We need to go! What if they invaded Wutai?" Yuffie panics. "We'll know when we get there. Calm yourself," said Vincent. The ZICON start attacking and the two are left fighting back. Vincent manages to make an opening and grabs hold of Yuffie, carrying her off to the sky to make their escape, and head to Wutai.

 **A/N:**

Hi guys! Just letting you know I start college in 4 days so I'm going to try to upload as many chapters as possible these next 4 days. Once college starts, it'll be hard to keep up with this story so wish me luck and I'll do as much as I can until it's finished. Thank you for taking the time to read my very first FanFic, I really appreciate it and I hope you will support me for my work. Look forward to the next chapter soon! \\(^-^)/


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Vincent and Yuffie stop at the gateway to Wutai, only to see the whole city in chaos. You could hear screams and battle cries all over the place. "I'm going to go look for my father!" Yuffie tells Vincent and begins running. Vincent follows suit as she makes her way to the palace that's in the Pagoda, guarding her from incoming attacks from the ZICON. Yuffie continues running as she looks around worriedly, trying to find Godo. "Father!" She calls out after making her way inside the palace. She knocks out ZICON that was blocking her path, as she searched room by room. Vincent followed behind. Soon, Yuffie heard Godo's grunts as if he was fighting. So she followed the sound and found him fighting off some ZICON in his bedroom. "Father!" Yuffie calls out to him, catching his attention. "Yuffie?" he questions, as if doubting she was really there. Yuffie rushes in and helps him fight off the ZICON, tell him he should aim for their heads. They kill all of the ZICON in the room, and catch their breaths. "Father!" Yuffie jumps at him with a tight hug. Vincent keeps guard at the doorway, shooting away every ZICON that came near.

"I was so worried! Are you okay?" Yuffie asks as she lets go of him. "I'm fine, but what are you doing here?" Godo asks her with a frown. "Why bother asking _that_? The city is under attack right now! What's wrong with me being here?" Yuffie retorts. "N-nothing, I'm just surprised to see you here, after all this time," said Godo. "If you're done crying, we need to get out of here," Vincent interrupts. Godo frowns at him, just noticing that Vincent was there, then nods in agreement. "Right. Let's get going then," says Godo, and they make their way out of the palace. They fight back the ZICON along the way until they reach outside. One of the guards come running to Godo telling him that they can't kill the ZICON since they keep regenerating. They already killed some of the villagers. Godo scolds him for giving up, and sends him off to keep fighting. "I'll help get the people and the children to safety. You two try to hold these monsters back," Godo orders. Yuffie nods and starts throwing her Shuriken, saving two children and sending them to Godo. Vincent continues head shooting the ZICON from afar.

Then, you could suddenly hear a holler from above. "WARRIORS OF WUTAI!" Godo shouts as loud as possible. Many stop what they're doing to look at him, including Vincent and Yuffie. Others did the same, but kept fighting while trying to listen since the ZICON kept attacking. "Do not lose hope about winning this fight," he starts. Yuffie and Vincent exchange a nod, and begin fighting the ZICON. "You lose hope, you lose the battle. Even your princess continues to fight for you! What men are you to step down and let your people suffer and die? What right do you have to give up? If you wish to die, so be it! But in my town, you die with honor! Not cowardliness! You hear me!?" he yells. "YES SIR!" everyone shouts. Then you could hear them holler their battle cries and begin fighting better than ever. They work together to push back the ZICON, risking their lives to protect the weak. Yuffie works hard to try to save as many people as she can. Vincent dual wields his guns to make killing the ZICON easier, but even he was unable to save everyone. Yuffie makes her way near a crying woman, holding her child closely. "Madam! We need to get you to safety!" Yuffie implores. The woman shakes her head crying. "I can't!" she cries. "My baby...," she cries harder, rocking back and forth. "Let me see," Yuffie takes a look at the boy, and gasps with horror as she sees his heart was pulled out. The woman continues to cry for her dead son. Yuffie tries her best to hold back her tears. "Madam...we need to go. Come," Yuffie tries to pull her up and take her to Godo.

Vincent begins to pull back as he is running low on bullets. Yuffie returns to his side after taking the woman to Godo. Vincent sees her tears and as she readies her Shuriken. "Yuffie?" Vincent calls her with concern. "Nevermind me! Let's get rid of these guys!" says Yuffie, as she roughly wipes her face. Vincent nods, and the two begin fighting their way through the ZICON. It seemed endless since more and more kept coming. Yuffie hears a little girl cry out for help. She turns her direction and see that she tripped, and her ankle was stuck. But the little girl was very away, so Yuffie tries to reach her as quickly as possible. Cutting through ZICON and trying not to harm her fellow warriors as she makes her way towards the girl to try to save her from the ZICON that was slowly approaching her. Just was she finally made a path to reach the girl, a ZICON she didn't see came falling from the top of the building and lands on the girl, puncturing it's hand through her chest, and rips her heart out. Yuffie freezes at the sight, watching the ZICON take a large bite out of her heart. Yuffie felt her heart drop very heavily. "Yuffie!" Vincent hollers after her and shoots the ZICON that was about to strike her from behind. "What are you doing!?" he questions.

Yuffie begins breathing very heavily, as her body begins to feel very heated. Then, she lets out the loudest scream anyone ever heard. Everyone had to quickly cover their ears, especially Vincent. Yuffie's eyes began to glow white very brightly, and two large, white Stars of Lakshmi formed on the backs of her hands as she screamed. Power began seeping out of her while she screamed, and it incinerated all ZICON within range. Yuffie stops screaming, and begins breathing heavily. Her eyes went back to normal and the stars disappeared. Yuffie was left standing like an empty shell, showing no emotion on her face. Only the endless tears that had streamed down her face. The people slowly uncovered their ears and watched Yuffie as if she was about to do something else. Even Godo was shocked. He quickly collected himself, then cast a giant shield covering all of Wutai. Vincent slowly walked over to Yuffie. "Yuffie?" he calls to her. Yuffie's vision begins to blur as she wobbly steps back, feeling very dizzy, then faints. Vincent quickly catches her before she falls to the ground. "Yuffie!" Vincent shakes her, but she doesn't budge.

Godo runs over to them and kneels next to Yuffie to inspect her. "Let's get her into the palace," he tells Vincent. Vincent nods, then carries Yuffie into the palace. Godo orders some of the guards to keep watch near the front gates. "I don't know how long this shield will stay up, sobe ready!" he ordered. "Yes sir!" the guards saluted, then headed towards the front gate. Godo leads Vincent into his room, and has him lay Yuffie on his bed. "I never thought something like that would bring it back out..," Godo whispers to himself as he frowns. Vincent looks at him with an unreadable look. He dares not say anything to him. Godo looks terribly disturbed and walks towards his window, with his hands behind his back, deep in thought. Vincent takes a quick glance at Yuffie before turning to Godo and walking up to him. He stands next to him and gazes out of the window himself. "Something I should know about?" he asks Godo. Godo remains silent. Then sighs. "Not necessarily. Why do you ask?" he finally speaks. "She doesn't look well..," Vincent responds. Godo chuckles lightheartedly. You could tell he was still feeling quite disturbed.

"Tell me. What exactly is going on?" Godo asks, referring to the ZICON. "Not too sure myself. All we know is that they came out of nowhere, started killing people, and turned them into their own kind. Dead or alive. Someone requested that we put a stop to them. That's how we ended up here," Vincent explained. "I see...," Godo responds with a deeper frown. Silence fills the air once more. "I take it you're not much of the converse type," says Godo. Vincent remains quiet. "I'm quite curious though. If you don't mind me asking, but, what are your thoughts about Yuffie?" Godo asks. Vincent feels startled by his question. "I don't..understand," he says. "I want to know your perspective of her. How is she when she's around you and your friends? What does she do in other towns or cities? How does she treat others? Do you find her disturbing? Tell me your thoughts," says Godo. Vincent remains silent, wondering what Godo was up to. _Is he trying to identify what could has caused Yuffie's reaction?_ he thought. "Why do you ask?" he questions. Godo sighs. "My daughter..she has taken a strong liking to you. I'm curious to know what it is about you that she likes so much," he says. Vincent felt annoyed. It was bad enough Yuffie was always calling his phone for 'no reason', now he finds out she's been talking about him behind his back.

"Yuffie may not have been able to visit her hometown, but she does often write me letters. That's how I know about you," Godo confesses. "Do me a favor and forget whatever she's told you about me. I don't like people prying into my business," Vincent tells him coldly. Godo chuckles. "You really are just as she described. Very self centered and ill-mannered. Vague, stoic, and quite discreet. That or you're just simply playing hard to get. But yet, she likes it. Though claims to also pity you for it. She knows your heart. Says even though you play hard to get, you're very kind-hearted and sincere on the inside," says Godo, recalling what he could from reading Yuffie's letters. "Shut up," Vincent coldly responds. Godo laughs softly. "She tells me you like to say that when you're embarrassed. But don't worry. Secret is safe with me. I don't mean to cause any harm or be discomforting to you. I apologize if I've upset you. I just wanted to get a taste of what my daughter sees in you is all," he says. Vincent turns to look at Godo, then back out the window. "Your daughter is lying on your bed, unconscious, and you have the nerve to talk about something like this?" Vincent states irritatedly. Godo sighs. "I guess I'm just trying to change the horrifying atmosphere..," he said sadly. "What did you mean by something bringing that out of Yuffie?" Vincent asked. "You don't want people prying into your business but you think you have the right to pry into other's?" Godo retorts, testing him. Vincent went quiet, to which Godo chuckles.

"But really. At least tell me if you find her disruptive or comforting," said Godo. _This man.._ , Vincent thinks to himself frustratedly. He remains quiet for a minute, then answers. "Neither," he tells him. "Really?" Godo looks at him with disbelief. "Truth be told, I don't know," Vincent responds honestly. Godo nods in acknowledgement. "Would you mind if I told you a story?" he asks. "Be my guest," Vincent responds half-heartedly. "Hmph," Godo smiles. "Firstly, have you ever thought about why Yuffie is the way she is?" Godo asks. Vincent thinks for a moment. "Not really," he answers honestly. "It's heartbreaking in a way, but also good in another. Yuffie is the kind of person to hide her true feelings. She used to not be that way. But..then something tragic happened, and that's when she changed," Godo says. Vincent remains silent and still. Godo continues. "Yuffie is extremely special you know. She's not like any other in all ways possible. When she was very little, she'd always find a way to turn everyone's frown upside down. Including her own. She got that trait from her mother, Kasumi. Yuffie was very open, and loved to put smiles on everyone's faces. You'd think she never had room in her heart for hate. Nor any type of negativity. She was just a ball of joy. Her mother felt it was due to a spirit that resides within her. When Yuffie was born, the mark of the Star of Lakshmi glowed brightly on her hand when she gave her first smile. It was then we knew she was special," said Godo. _So that's what that mark is_ , Vincent thought. "But what does it have to do with what happened earlier?" he asked, referring to when Yuffie's screaming unleashed her power and killed off the ZICON.

"I'm not exactly too sure myself. Only, I know it disappeared when she changed. Her mother became extremely ill when she was little, and due to that weakness, someone who despised our clan snuck into the palace, and killed her. Yuffie happened to witness it, and since then, she was never the same. Her powers that had once brought her strength, had sealed itself deep inside her, and it was never seen since. Yuffie's heart began to change since that night. She became highly depressed, and closed herself off to everyone. Including me. But as they say, things like that don't last forever. So of course, over time, she began to recover slightly. But even then, you could still tell that there's darkness still lingering in her heart. So to hide it, she tries to act like the way she used to be by being optimistic," says Godo. Vincent still stays quiet. Then he looks at Godo. "Why are you telling me this?" he finally asks. "Because I don't want you to misunderstand who she is, and misjudge her for it. Like you, everyone has a time where something changes their hearts. Be it a good or a bad thing. Yuffie suffers plenty within herself. I don't want other things to bring her down even more as she fights to regain her true self," says Godo. "Meaning?" Vincent asks. "Meaning, I'd like you to help her," Godo responds. Vincent says nothing but still stares at him as if waiting to hear what else he has to say. "Please. Help Yuffie restore the heart she once had. The heart she was born with," Godo begs. Vincent then looks at Yuffie who was still lying in bed, unconscious. Then looks back at Godo. "I don't..know if I can..," he tells him. "Trust me. You can. You're the only one who can. I know that, not just by gut feeling, but by Yuffie's heart," says Godo. Vincent looks back out the window, and the two men remain quiet for the remainder of the night.

By morning, the ZICON had disappeared. That left Vincent to suspect that they only show up when it's night, or if it's someplace dark. Yuffie begins to regain consciousness and turns her head to see Vincent leaning against the wall next to the window, watching the sunrise. Yuffie then looks up at the ceiling, feeling highly drained. Like life had been sucked out of her soul. "You're awake," Vincent speaks, then walks up to her. "How do you feel?" he asks. Yuffie says nothing, and remains staring at the ceiling. Godo then walks in carrying a cup of tea. He almost drops it when he sees that Yuffie is awake. He quickly sets the cup down and rushes to her side. "Yuffie! Are you alright?" he asks with concern. Yuffie still says nothing, and doesn't move a muscle. "Yuffie?" Godo tries to get her attention. Yuffie finally turns her head slowly to look at him on his knees next to the bed, and Vincent standing behind him. Tears begin to form in her eyes, but her face shows no emotion. "Yuffie..," Godo says quietly. Yuffie slowly turns her head away from them, and wipes her eyes. Then she sits up silently, not saying a word.

She begins to recall the memories of last night. Images of the woman holding her dead son due to his heart having been torn out, and the little girl who's heart was ripped out and bitten into by the ZICON before her very eyes. Yuffie's heart begins to race. She quickly clutches her chest and begins breathing heavily. Tears began streaming down her face once again. "Yuffie..," Godo puts his hand on her back. "Calm down. It's alright," he says softly as he rubs her back. Yuffie still replays the horror in her mind, and begins shaking. "Yuffie..? Yuffie!" Godo calls out to her, making her freeze and look at him. Vincent could only stand by and watch in silence. He couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for her. "I'll go get you some tea. It'll help you calm down. Alright?" Godo tells Yuffie. Yuffie slowly nods. Godo gets up and walks out of the room. Yuffie wipes her face again. Vincent slowly walks around the bed to face her, then kneels in front of her on one knee, scanning her face. "Yuffie," he calls her. It takes a moment, but Yuffie soon meets his eyes. "Do you remember what happened last? Before you passed out?" he asks. Yuffie thought for a moment. She recalled watching the ZICON kill the little girl, panics at the sight, and then everything suddenly going white. "I...," Yuffie starts to say. Vincent waits patiently for Yuffie to speak. "I don't..remember," Yuffie says after a while.

Godo walks back in with a cup of tea and hands it to Yuffie. "Here. Drink," he says as he hands it to her. Yuffie looks up at him, then the cup and slowly nods before taking the cup from him. She takes a small sip after blowing on it, then takes another, and another. Soon she gulps down the whole cup. "Feeling better?" Godo asks. Yuffie nods. "Yeah...thanks," she says as she hands him the empty cup. Vincent stands back up and looks at Godo. "She doesn't know it happened," he tells him, referring to her powers awakening. Godo nods in acknowledgement, and turns to set the teacup on a nearby table. "So what now? What do you plan to do next?" he asks. Silence filled the air. Godo turns to face Vincent and Yuffie. "I'm not..sure. I don't know where to start now," said Yuffie. "I have a pretty good idea where we can start," Vincent states. "Well let's hear it," said Godo. "The ZICON disappeared when morning hit. That means they're only around in the dark," said Vincent. Yuffie looks thoughtful. "So...you think we should track where they're going?" she asks, beginning to catch on to what Vincent was thinking. "Yeah. I suggest we stay another night. I'm sure the ZICON will come back when it hits dark. Once the sun begins to rise and they start leaving, we follow them," Vincent proposes. "Because there might be a chance you'll find out where they're coming from...clever thinking," Godo compliments. Yuffie nods in agreement. "Okay. Let's do that then," she says. Vincent nods.

...

Nightfall came and as Vincent suspected, the ZICON reappeared. Godo had reinforced the shield before night came, so they still couldn't get inside Wutai. Yuffie dozed off to sleep within an hour. Godo and Vincent stayed up. When it was almost time for sunrise, Godo wakes up Yuffie, letting her know to get ready to leave. Yuffie nods, yawns and stretches, and grabs her things. Godo walks up next to Vincent outside the palace doorway. "Can I trust you to keep my daughter safe?" he asks. "Hmph. I can't guarantee her full protection, but I'll do what I can," said Vincent. Godo smiled feeling reassured that they would be fine. "Thank you," he said before facing the sky. Yuffie soon came out of the palace and greeted the two. "I'm all set," she said. Vincent and Godo turn to her, acknowledging her presence. They watch and wait until the sun begins to rise. "It's time," said Vincent. Godo gives Yuffie a quick hug. "You be careful out there, you hear?" he said. Yuffie nodded. "Let's go," said Vincent as he begins walking off. Yuffie bows to Godo, then follows after Vincent.

They remain quiet along the way. Vincent started to feel uneasy about it, since he wasn't used to Yuffie being so silent. He realized he'd rather her be her usual, optimistic self than lifeless. As the two follow the ZICON, the air begins to grow extremely foggy, to where they could no longer see the ZICON. Even with Vincent's extremely enhanced vision. They become trapped and lost in the middle of nowhere. Only they could tell they were in a forest due to the dead trees surrounding them. "Stay close," Vincent tells Yuffie. She nods, then they continue walking. "Uwahh- Oof! Let go!" Suddenly, Yuffie gets yanked to the ground by the leg and dragged off too quickly, Vincent couldn't catch her. "Help me!" she yelled.

 **A/N:**

Whoo! Man this chapter took a while! I just kept coming up with more ideas and adding them, it's already 10pm! I'm beat! Anyways, thank you for reading and look forward to the next chapter tomorrow morning!


	4. Chapter 4

_**Fun Fact!**_

Some of the story about Yuffie's mom is actually true. Her name really is Kasumi and she died due to an illness when Yuffie was little. Even I didn't know this until I looked it up and found the info on the FF Wiki.

Back to the story! *^*

 **Chapter 4:**

Vincent tried to follow the sound of Yuffie's yells and screams, but to no avail, since it echoed from all directions. Vincent decided to go airborne, but even in the sky, he couldn't find her through all the fog. Then the yelling had abruptly stopped, making it harder to search for her. _Damn_ , Vincent cursed as he landed on a tree branch.

Meanwhile Shelke was on her way to pay another visit to Lucrecia. Only, when she got there, Lucrecia was gone. Inside the crystal chamber that she was kept in was completely empty. The crystal chamber was shattered in some places, meaning that someone broke in and took Lucrecia. Shelke pulls out her phone and dials Vincent. She gets a system message saying either his phone was turned off or it was out of service. That was due to Vincent having no signal wherever he was at. Shelke leaves him a voicemail instead. Then she makes her way to Edge to meet with Tifa and the rest, hoping they knew what happened. By the time she got there, Cloud had just returned to 7th Heaven from making a delivery and was about to leave for another. "Shelke! What are you doing here?" Tifa asked. "Have you seen Vincent?" Shelke asked. "Mm..he did stop by, but that was almost three days ago. I haven't seen him since. Why do you ask?" said Tifa. "I need to find him. Someone took Lucrecia!" said Shelke. Cloud and Tifa exchange a surprised look. "Maybe Yuffie knows where he is. She's been looking for Vincent all this time, so when he came back, I'm sure she's been clinging to him. You should go find her and ask," Tifa suggested. " _If_ she's even here," said Cid as he walked over.

"What do you mean?" Tifa asked. "As far as I know, no one's seen her around either. If Vincent is gone, she most likely went with him," said Cid. "Where do you think they went?" Cloud asked. "How the hell am I supposed to know?" Cid said as he frowned. "That's three people who've gone missing in just three days...," said Shelke. "Let's ask around then. Surely _someone_ must have at least some kind of clue about where they went," said Tifa. "We'll split up. If no one finds anything, we'll rendezvous at the center of town," said Cloud, and the others nodded in agreement. They claim parts of the town they will search and then meet in the center. They talked with as many people as they could, but no one seemed to have known Vincent had even came to town, or they did see him, but didn't really pay much attention. One person said they remembered Yuffie making a delivery to them, but that was the last time they saw her. They didn't see where she went, but figured she went back to 7th Heaven. Shelke thanks them for the info and decides to head to the center of town, where everyone else was already there.

"Anything?" Barret asked. Shelke shook her head. "The closest I got was one of Tifa's customers," she said. "My customer?" Tifa questioned. "The one you had Yuffie make a delivery to. They said that was the last time they saw her. They didn't see where she went," Shelke explained. "That must've been when she went missing..," said Cloud. "But what about Vincent?" Tifa asked. Cid was about to say something but was interrupted. "Young lady in black," a man suddenly called out. The group turns to see who said that, and it turned out to be Gerald. "Who's this 'Vincent' you're looking for?" he asks, not even looking at the group, but sharpening a piece of wood with his dagger. The group exchanges looks, then Tifa walks over to him. "May I ask who you are?" she asked politely. "Name's Gerald, milady," he answered. "You know Vincent?" Tifa asked. "I might. Just need to confirm. That's why I asked who he was. Can you describe?" said Gerald. "Pfft! Black and crimson is really all the description _anyone_ needs," said Barret. Gerald laughed. "Yeah, I know him. I like the guy," said Gerald. "Where is he? Is he alright? Was Yuffie with him?" Tifa began questioning. Gerald chuckled. "Easy there, ma'am. Don't worry, I'll explain," said Gerald. "Make it short!" said Barret. Tifa gave Barret a death glare that read 'Respect your Elders or I'll kill you', which made him flinch.

"Ahem, sorry," Barret said quietly. "I saw him walking by. He looked capable so I called him over and offered him a special mission. Then this girl showed up out of nowhere and clung to him like a cub. I'm guessing she's this 'Yuffie' you're asking about. I thought she was his girlfriend," Gerald started. You could suddenly hear Cid and Barret snickering. " _Girlfriend_ ," Cid whispered to Barret, trying to hold back a laugh. "Next thing you know, Vincent will be a woman," Barret whispered back, then he and Cid bursted out laughing. Tifa slowly turned to them with a straight face. Cloud tried to hide his smirk by covering his mouth and fake coughing. Tifa frowned at him in disbelief. "No wonder opposites attract!" said Cid, and he and Barret laughed harder. Shelke just stood there looking completely blank. Tifa rolled her eyes and turned back to Gerald. "Please continue," she said politely. Gerald chuckled. "Anyways, Vincent declined at first, but then the girl asked what we were talking about. So I explained the mission. _Then_ Vincent was interested. So they both took up the mission and claimed they'd do it with no pay. I told them the place they needed to go, and suggested they take the train to get there. Don't know if they actually used that method or not," said Gerald. "What was the mission?" Cloud asked.

Gerald explained all that he knew about it, and how he discovered the ZICON. "You're better off heading straight to Wutai. I just heard recently that they attacked that place. There's a chance your friends might be there. If you're wanting to take up this mission, I'll be glad to pay," said Gerald. "Thanks for telling us, but no thanks. We'll go without pay," said Tifa. "Let's go," said Cloud, and the group nodded. Then they were off. "Tch! Youngsters these days..so generous," Gerald chuckled, then took a sip of beer.

...

Vincent is stuck camping alone for the night, but stays high up in a tree so he can't get attacked. Aseach minute goes by, he can't help feeling more and more restless. Meanwhile, Yuffie slowly awakens to find herself hanging, tied up by the wrists. "Uggh...my head," Yuffie groans in pain. She looked around at her surroundings. _Where am I?_ she thought. The place was very dark, she couldn't tell where she was. The only things she could see was what looked like a computer screen from the far left, but most of all, what stood before her took her breath away instantly. A large capsule filled with liquid glowed before her, with a brown-haired woman dressed in white who looked as if she was sleeping soundly, floating inside it. Yuffie was highly shocked to see the woman, she almost didn't believe it. "L-...Lucrecia?" she breathed out.

Suddenly a door swings open from the left, revealing a man-shaped figure standing in the doorway. He switches on the light, making Yuffie squint her eyes until they adjust to the light. "Ahh! You've awoken," the man said. He looked quite elderly. Short grey hair, wrinkled skin, emerald green eyes, and had scars on his neck and the side of his face. He wore a white lab coat, a white shirt underneath and black pants with slacks. "Who are you?" Yuffie asked. "You may call me Dr. Schwartz," the man answered. "Why do you have Lucrecia? What do you want with me?" Yuffie questioned. Schwartz walked over to his computer, chuckling. "I got to witness something very extraordinary from you. That's why I've taken interest in you, and will make you my first test subject," he said. Yuffie was very confused. "What are you talking about?" she asked him. Schwartz turned to her with a surprised look on his face. "You don't remember?" he asked. Yuffie remained silent, trying to think of what he could possibly be talking about.

"That immense power you used to destroy my minions in Wutai, you don't remember that happening?" he asked. "Your minions..? Wutai...wait..! You're the one behind the ZICON!?" She asked. "Yes, I was there in Wutai, spying on the people who suddenly started killing my minions. It was there I saw you use your powers. Try to remember," he said. Yuffie frowned, deep in thought. Her thoughts roamed to when Vincent asked her the last thing she remembered before she fainted, and when he told Godo that she didn't know 'it' happened. _Could this be what Vincent was talking about?_ she thought. Dr. Schwartz sighed. "Oh well. No matter. Either way, I know you have power hidden inside you, and I'm going to use you as my first test subject for it. Congradulations!" he said, then rolled his chair over to his desk and started to grab things as if to piece them together.

"What are you going to do?" Yuffie asked, trying to move her wrists together to break free from the ropes while he wasn't looking. "I, am going to resurrect Lucrecia," said Schwartz, then turned around in his chair holding a needle and tube that was filled with slight yellow liquid. Yuffie then looked frightened. Schwartz laughed as he stood, then walked over to Yuffie and stood in front of her. He held her chin up with his finger. "For this to work, it's time for you to go bye-bye," he said. "No!" said Yuffie and she began shaking her body, trying to set herself free. "No use struggling," said Schwartz as he lowered himself and rubbed his hand on Yuffie's thigh, making her legs go numb. "It's a shame. You look quite tasty too," he said as he licked his lips. Yuffie felt her eyes getting warm. "Worry not. It'll be over before you know it," said Schwartz as he slowly inserted the needle into her thigh, and injected the liquid. Yuffie breathed heavily, then slowly. _Vincent..._ , she thought before she passed out.

"Heh heh heh heh hehh," Schwartz laughed proudly. He set the needle on his desk, then grabbed a small dagger off of it. He walked over to Yuffie and cut the rope above her hands. He still left it tied around her wrists, carried her over to the capsule that was behind her, and laid her inside it. He closed the glass lid over her and pressed a button that started to fill the capsule with thick liquid that looked kind of like water. Then he connected tubes between Yuffie's capsule and Lucrecia's. He pulls down a large switch, and the tubes light up. Power begins seeping out of Yuffie's capsule into Lucrecia's, and soon Lucrecia begins to cough. Schwartz quickly pulls the lever back up and runs over to her capsule. He opens it and lets the liquid pour out all over him. "YEESSS! I'VE DONE IT!" he shouts with his fists in the air as Lucrecia continues to cough. She climbs out of the capsule warrily and falls to her knees. "Lucrecia!" Schwartz quickly gets on his knees next to her and grabs her arms. Lucrecia slowly looks up at him. Schwartz smiles. "Do you remember me?" he asks her. Lucrecia looks back down. She lifts her hands as if to inspect them. "Who...am I?" she asks. Schwartz's smile fades as he realizes what she had said.

 **A/N:**

Surprise! Plot twist! Also, if you haven't realized, Dr Schwartz is indeed one of the characters I own. I completely made him up! xD Haha! Anyways, hope you enjoyed the story so far. Thank you for reading, it's much appreciated as always. I've got a bit of a busy day today but I'll try to have the next chapter posted tonight!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:**

Hi guys! I sincerely apologize for the delay. I would've had the chapter posted last night as promised but, my great grandma had just passed away while I was working on this. So it's been hard for everyone. It is the weekend though! So to make up for it, I'm aiming to post at least 3 more chapters today! Again, I'm very sorry for the delay. I hope you will still continue to support me and still enjoy my FanFic. Story time!

 **Chapter 5:**

"There it is!" Tifa said, pointing at where she spotted Wutai through the window of the Shera. She and the others didn't feel like taking the train, so Cid offered a ride with the Shera. "Next stop, Wutai!" says Cid as he pilots Shera, then makes a landing near Wutai. Godo sees the Shera, so he makes his way towards the front gateway. The team gets off the Shera and make their way to Wutai, where they meet with Godo. "My my, who do we have here?" says Godo with a smile. "Godo!" Tifa greets him. "It's been some time. How is everyone?" said Godo. Tifa was about to answer but Cloud interrupted. "We're not here for small talk," said Cloud. Godo nods. "I figured..straight to the point as always. What brings you here then?" he said as he clasped his hands behind his back. "We heard this place was attacked by ZICON," said Tifa. "Aye. Indeed it was. It was a tough fight too. I never expected my daughter and Vincent to show up though. They were a big help," said Godo. "So they did come here! Are they still here?" Shelke asked. "I'm afraid not. They left yesterday morning," said Godo.

Shelke look disappointed. "Come inside. I'll explain what happened," said Godo, and he took them to his room in the palace. He explained to them everything that happened since the ZICON started attacking. He left out the details of Yuffie's power unleashing and destroying the ZICON, and instead replaced it by saying he had all of the guards work together to push the ZICON out of Wutai so he could put the barrier up, and keep them out. Then he told them Vincent and Yuffie's plan to find where they came from, resulting in them leaving the previous morning. "since they left, my people and I have been burying the dead and mourning for our losses," said Godo with a sad look on his face. Silence filled the room. Then Shelke stood up. "Since they left only yesterday, they couldn't have gotten too far. I'll try calling Vincent again," she said, and the others nodded.

Meanwhile, Vincent had fallen asleep high up in a tree. He started to dream of Yuffie drowning in a capsule filled with liquid. She kept banging on the glass door to the capsule and calling out for help. "Heeellpp! Vincent!" she yelled through the liquid, then Vincent woke up instantly. He was quite startled by the dream. He breathed out deeply to calm himself. Then his phone suddenly rang. He checked the caller ID and it was Shelke's number, so he picked up. "Vincent! Guys! It went through!" said Shelke. You could hear the team's talk of relief through the phone. "What the hell are you doin Vincent!? We've been looking for you everywhere!" Barrett yelled. "Calm down already!" said Tifa. Vincent chuckled. "Vincent, where are you? Is Yuffie with you?" Shelke asked. Vincent was silent. "Vincent?" Shelke called. "Yuffie was kidnapped by the ZICON. I'm still searching for her," he finally said. "What? Why would the ZICON kidnap Yuffie?" Shelke asked in confusion. "Put him on speaker, I want to hear what he's saying," said Cid. Shelke did so. "If I knew why, I would have said so," said Vincent. "I see...," said Shelke. "Well, that's Vincent scratched off the list. Now we have to find Yuffie on top of Lucrecia," said Barret. "Lucrecia?" Vincent asked with a frown. "Yeah. Did you get my voicemail?" said Shelke. Vincent hangs up and checks his voicemail. [Beep!] _Vincent! Where are you? Someone broke into the chamber and took Lucrecia! We have to find her! Call back whenever you can._ [Beep!]

Shelke calls him back and Vincent picks up. "I take it you haven't seen Lucrecia anywhere during your search," said Shelke. "No," said Vincent. "I'd assume it was the ZICON, but none of this makes any damn sense," said Cid. "I just hope my daughter is alright..," said Godo. Vincent had nothing to say. Then he heard sounds of movement from nearby. Vincent using his enhanced vision could tell it was ZICON. "I got to go," he said and hung up. "Vincent!" Shelke said as the phone clicked. The team exchanged looks with one another. Vincent kept himself hidden, following the ZICON. Then he suddenly heard a man's voice from a far. "Right this way, my dear. You! Watch over the girl, I'll be back for her," he said. Then lots of ZICON could be heard making loud growls. Vincent made his way towards the sounds, and soon found a large horde of them in font of a large, cube-like building. As they started to enter the building, Vincent began firing shots at the ZICON. Then the roar of a vehicle could be heard sounding off, and Vincent spotted it driving away. He was now surrounded by ZICON, so he couldn't chase after it. Though he wanted to go inside the building and see who the man was talking about.

Vincent pulls out a second gun and while dodging attacks, he headshots every ZICON around him. By the time he's done, he's low on bullets. He puts his guns away as he makes his way into the building. Inside, all the lights are turned off, but Vincent can still see just fine. There are three doors he spots when he walks in. One on each side of the room. But the door to his left was wide open, and a bright greenish light was emitting from inside. Vincent makes his way towards it and stops at the doorway, looking very surprised. The light came from the capsule Yuffie was held in. She floated inside it, unconscious and her wrists still tied together in front of her. Flashes of the dream Vincent had of her played in his mind again. Remembering her yelling his name broke him out of his trance. "Yuffie!" he calls out as he quickly makes his way over to her capsule. He tries to find the control panel to the capsule. He finds it on the right side of the capsule, and underneath it, a large blue button that said 'Open/Close' in bold letters. He presses it, and the glass door pops right open, with all the liquid pouring out, and Yuffie along with it. Vincent catches her before she falls though.

"Yuffie!" he calls, then rips the rope off her wrists with his golden claw hand. A tiny bit of liquid seeps out from the side of Yuffie's mouth. "Yuffie!" Vincent shakes her, but she easily flops like a rag doll. Vincent lays her flat on the ground, and begins performing CPR. With each press he does on her chest, liquid bursts out of her mouth. He keeps going until no more comes out, but Yuffie still remains unconscious. Vincent lifts her up bridal style, and decides he'd take her back to Wutai. It turns out that it wasn't that far away. From high up in the tree, he could see the top of the palace from miles away. Vincent makes his way over there as quickly as he can, staying high up in the trees so he wouldn't have to deal with ZICON. Shelke called him a few times but he was unable to pick up due to him carrying Yuffie. But soon enough, he made it to Wutai, and into the palace. The team felt the need to leave and go help search for Yuffie and Lucrecia. Tifa had just opened the door to Godo's room so they could leave, but Vincent stood in front of it, blocking their path, carrying Yuffie in his arms. "Yuffie!" everyone said in unison.

 **A/N:**

Stay tuned for the next 3 chapters! \\(^-^)/


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

"What happened to her!?" Godo asked, rushing over to Yuffie. "Whoever is behind all of this had the ZICON kidnap Yuffie and they used her for something," said Vincent as he walked over to Godo's bed and lay Yuffie on it. Tifa rushed to her side and checked her pulse. "I...I can't feel it. I can't feel her pulse," said Tifa. Everyone looked stunned. Vincent felt as if something punched him in the chest. Tifa climbs onto the bed, and performs CPR on Yuffie. Better than Vincent did. Before anyone knew it, Yuffie was coughing up a lot of liquid and a bit of blood. Everyone sighed with relief. "She's alright now," said Tifa. "Oh, Yuffie," Godo brushed Yuffie's head with his hand. Yuffie finished coughing and Tifa helped clean her up. Yuffie looked at her group of friends standing next to her with worried looks on their faces. "Heh, hey there," she said with a small smile. Vincent kneeled next to her. "How do you feel?" Tifa asked. "I think I'm okay," she said, then she sat up.

"What happened to you?" Godo asked. Yuffie explained all she remembered after she and Vincent had left Wutai to follow the ZICON. "I got knocked out, and when I woke up, I was hanging in this weird room by my wrists tied up. There was this large capsule in front of me with Lucrecia inside it," said Yuffie. "Lucrecia was there!?" Shelke asked as she jumped up in shock. Yuffie nodded. "I couldn't believe it either, but it was really her. This man showed up and said he was going to resurrect her, using me as his first test subject because...," Yuffie paused, then shook her head. "I don't really understand it..but anyway, he said his name was..Schwartz," Yuffie said as she frowned. "Schwartz...," Red XIII spoke more to himself. "I feel like I've heard that name before," he said. "Me too! It sounds verryy familiar," said Cait Sith.

"So how did you end up in that capsule?" Vincent asked. "I was in a capsule?" Yuffie asked. "I found you inside a capsule in that room you were talking about," said Vincent. Yuffie frowned. "Maybe he put me in there...the last thing I remember was..that's right! While he was telling me what he wanted to do, he was filling this tube and needle thingy with something, and when I tried to wiggle myself free, he made my legs go numb so I couldn't kick him. Then he injected whatever it was in my leg, and before I knew it, I had passed out. I don't know what else happened after that," said Yuffie. "He must've put you to sleep, and then put you in that capsule," said Cid. "I'm still stuck on why he would possibly need someone like Yuffie to resurrect Lucrecia. We don't even know what he did to them, or whether he succeeded in resurrecting Lucrecia," said Shelke, frowning with her hand on her chin. Everyone went silent.

"Yuffie," said Cloud. "Hm?" Yuffie answered, looking up at him. "You said you didn't understand why. What exactly did he say to you?" Cloud asked. Yuffie went quiet for a moment, then looked at Godo and Vincent. Then she looked back down at her legs. "He said that he was there. When Wutai was under attack. He said something about witnessing me unleashing my power that killed off all of the ZICON. But...I don't remember anything like that happening at all," said Yuffie. Godo and Vincent exchanged a look. "Power? Did he describe it?" Tifa asked. "No," said Yuffie. "But..my father and Vincent were there too. They should know what happened when I was out...right?" said Yuffie. Vincent and Godo looked at each other once more. Godo sighed, then sat down on the bed next to Yuffie.

"Yuffie...do you remember your mother, Kasumi?" he asked her. Yuffie looked thoughtful. "I...think so," she said. "What do you remember?" Godo asked. Yuffie closed her eyes as if she was concentrating. She tried to think back to her younger years, and recall what memories she had of her mother. Slowly, the images and pieces of memories of her mother came to her mind the more she focused. She described aloud what they were as she did so. Soon, things became more clear. Yuffie realize she really did have powers, and because she lost them when her mother died, she completely forgot she had them. Yuffie was in shock. She looked at her hands, then at Godo. Godo places a hand on the top of her head. "What...am I?" Yuffie asked. "You're you. Nothing more, and nothing less," said Godo. That didn't seem like a satisfying answer to Yuffie, but she didn't complain.

"For now, all we need to focus on is finding this 'Schwartz' and what he's done with Lucrecia, and put a stop to these ZICON," said Barret. "Yeah!" Cait Sith jumped. "ZICON...," said Tifa, looking troubled. "What's wrong?" Cid asked. "I've been thinking about this for a while. The meaning behind the acronym for it just seems so strange to me. And when I think back to what Gerald told us, something's just not adding up," said Tifa. "I've been wondering the same thing," said Red XIII. "What do you mean?" Yuffie asked. "If Gerald really doesn't know much about the ZICON, how does he know that's what those things are called, and what it stands for?" Tifa asked. You could tell the realization spread all over the room in a heartbeat. "So he's hiding something..," said Vincent. "He must be. It just doesn't make sense," said Red XIII.

"Tch! Let's go find and ask him then. I don't like secrets," said Barret. "Yeah," Yuffie nodded. "No! I forbid you to go, you need more time to recover," said Godo. "I think I've recovered plenty. I can take care of myself," said Yuffie, crossing her arms. "Says the one who's always getting into trouble," Vincent retorts. Yuffie scoffs. "Well excuuussee _me_ for not being useful and a big help in knowing what happened with Lucrecia," Yuffie sticks her tongue out at Vincent. "Hmph!" Vincent looks away. "It doesn't matter now, you're staying here," said Godo. "No. I'm going with them," Yuffie argued. "Yuffie? You're staying here. I'm not going to let you be in harms way again! End of discussion!" said Godo with a serious tone. " _You_ aren't in charge of _my life_ and what _I_ do with it. _I_ am! I'm going, and you can't stop me. End of discussion," Yuffie claims, then stomps off out of the room and slams the door behind her. "Like father, like daughter," Cid whispers. _I'm not a child anymore! I'm not helpless!_ Yuffie yells in her head as she stomps down the stairs.

The bedroom is silent. Godo sighs in frustration. "That girl..I swear..when did she become so rebellious?" he said, shaking his head. "She does have a point though. You can't just force someone to do something they don't want. Even if it's someone you care about. Let them learn from their mistakes and pay their own consequences," said Vincent, then he walked out of the room. Godo looked as if he had been stabbed. "You could learn a thing or two from your 'rebellious' daughter," said Red XIII, as he and Cait Sith soon followed Vincent. Tifa looked sympathetic, even though she knew what Vincent and Yuffie said was true, Godo was only doing what any parent would do for their child. Tifa walked over to him and gave him a small bow. "We'll be going then. Don't worry, we'll look after her. She's family to us, you know," she said with a wink. Godo sighed, then smiled. "Thank you," he said, giving her a small nod. The rest of the team left his room, and made their way to the Shera, where they met up with Vincent, Red XIII and Cait Sith. "Where's Yuffie?" Tifa asked. "She's inside," said Vincent. "Sulking," said Red XIII as if to finish Vincent's sentence. "Let's go," said Cid, and everyone got on board.

...

"Home sweet home!" said Cid, after landing Shera. They decided that Vincent, Yuffie, and Shelke would go meet with Gerald, and everyone else would wait in the Shera. Tifa wanted to go check up on Denzel and Marlene, so they let her do that, and she would meet back in Shera when she's done. Yuffie spots Gerald in the same place they first met him. "There he is!" she points, then runs over to him. Gerald was asleep, snoring quite loudly. "Hey!" Yuffie shouts at him, banging her fist on the table in front of him. It startles him and he jolts awake. He seems surprised to see them. "Well hey there! Looks like you found 'em," he said, mostly to Shelke. "How exactly do you know about the ZICON? What are you hiding?" Vincent asked him, his crimson eyes glaring harshly at him.

Gerald says nothing for a moment. "Who figured it out? That one lady in black? She seems very intellig-," he said. "Answer the question," Vincent interrupts harshly. Gerald holds his hands up in surrender. "Calm yourself, lad. There's no rush," said Gerald. "We don't have much time! Just make it quick!" said Yuffie, crossing her arms. Shelke remained quiet. "I'll admit, I did hold back on some details. But before I told you everything, I wanted to test you guys. Sure enough, you passed," said Gerald. Vincent and Yuffie looked at each other, then back at Gerald. "You met with Schwartz?" Gerald asked. "I did," said Yuffie specifically. "Who is he?" Vincent asked. Gerald leaned closer to them on the table. "He's my older brother," he said.

 **A/N:**

Whoo! Plot twist once again! Look forward to 2 more chapters today! :D


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

Vincent, Yuffie and Shelke were in shock from the news. "He's..you're brother!?" Yuffie asked, not wanting to believe it. "This doesn't make sense...you seem so different," said shelke. "They look nothing like each other!" said Yuffie. "Why would your brother do something like this?" Shelke asked Gerald. "Because he's insane. Of course, he wasn't always that way. So you can't fully blame him," said Gerald. "Some of our friends say he's familiar to them. Was he involved in some kind of organization in the past?" Vincent asked. "He was a Turk. One of the most intelligent and famous amongst them," said Gerald. "A Turk? I don't recall anyone by his name as a Turk," said Vincent. "Really? You sound as if you were a turk yourself," said Gerald. " _I was_ ," said Vincent. Gerald looked shocked. "Someone like you was a Turk? What happened to you?" asked Gerald. "Nevermind that. We just want to know about Schwartz. Tell us what happened with him," said Vincent.

Tifa returns to the Shera with some drinks for everyone. "They're not back yet?" she asked. "Nope," said Cid as he grabbed a bottle of beer. "Hmm...," Tifa frowns. Gerald takes a few gulps of water before he tells the story. "As you already know, he worked as a Turk. Before you bother asking what I was doing at the time, let me tell you now, nothing. I was just a boy. A Momma's boy in fact. I don't exactly know the kind of work he did as a Turk, but from what I remember, there was a point where he got gravely injured. Can't remember how but, there was this lady named Lucrecia who tended to his wounds and nursed him back to full health," said Gerald. The trio exchanged the surprised looks.

"I'm sure you can guess, they became friends, and he fell in love with her. Lucrecia suddenly started getting busy with some project she was working on with Gast Faremis, and eventually Professor Hojo. So they didn't get to spend as much time together like they used to. My brother decided that he would propose to her when they next meet. But, fate wouldn't allow that. News got around that Lucrecia had passed away, and that's when my brother went mad. He quit being a Turk and blamed everyone who 'took Lucrecia away' from him, and would get his revenge. We lost contact with him for many years since then. Then out of the blue, news got out he came out of hiding, and had built a few laboratories. I met up with him and he told me about how he would get his revenge by creating ZICON and take over the world. He asked me to help him, and I refused. I tried talking some sense into him, but he wouldn't listen. So I left. Some time later, he sent me a message threatening that he was coming for me. The next thing I knew, his ZICON found my house and attacked me and my friends. My friends were killed, and I managed to escape. Found my way here to this beautiful town eventually, and ever since then, I've been looking for someone to help bring them down," Gerald explained.

The trio were quiet as they let all the details sink in. "Well...based on what you said, it sounds like you don't know everything Schwartz was planning," said Shelke. Gerald look at her in confusion. "You make it sound like something big. What am I missing?" Gerald asked. "Lucrecia," said Vincent. Gerald now looked at him with more confusion. "Schwartz is trying to find a way to resurrect her. He kidnapped her, then me to use me as his 'first test subject' because of my power. But because he put me into a coma, I don't know what he did with us or if he succeeded with his plan," said Yuffie. Now it was Gerald who was highly shocked. Then he frowned. "Your power? Elaborate," said Gerald. Yuffie was hesitant at first, but she took a deep breath. "I have some kind of power within me that I was born with. I used to play with it all the time when I was a child, but when my mother passed away, it disappeared. Like it sealed itself inside me. And because I was so little, over the years I grew up, I completely forgot I had it. Apparently it unleashed when the ZICON attacked Wutai, and it destroyed all the ZICON within range," Yuffie explained.

Gerald seemed very mesmerized and interested by the news. "So...what are you? For you to hold a power like that..you must not be human," he said. Yuffie felt her heart sink. She balled her hand in a soft fist and laid it over her chest as she looked down. "I...I don't know..," she said, feeling down. "I don't even understand how to use it or why I have it," she added. _Then again, I've never really understood myself in general either_ , she thought as she walked off. _Everyone's always mistreated and misjudged me. What am I? My dad seems to not know either. If my mom was still alive, she'd probably be able to tell me, s_ he thought deeply.

"You was born and raised by caring family in Wutai. You have friends who are willing to help you and consider you part of the family to them. And you really mean to say you don't know who you are?" Vincent said from behind Yuffie, startling her. She quickly turned around to face him. "N-No! It's just...I just don't understand why. I've always felt like there was something wrong with me. I seemed to have had a good life when I was little. That time seems like I was the 'real' me. But then...everything changed when my mom was killed. It's like she was a part of me that I wasn't supposed to lose. But then the situation with my power get tangled up in all of that, and no one knows why I have it. I didn't even remember I had it within me. I grew up as a completely different person from before Mother passed away. It's almost like I've been living a lie," said Yuffie, looking back down as she spoke. Vincent steps closer to her. Yuffie looks up at him and felt his gaze was seeping into her soul. It almost frightened her. "Your power isn't what defines who you are. It's your heart. Know your heart, and you'll know yourself. Only then will you understand everything," he said, then continued walking closer to Yuffie. Making her step back until she was flat against a wall. Vincent pressed his hand on the wall above her head and leaned his face close to hers. "Next time you dare start doubting yourself like this again, I'll make sure to knock some sense into you and punish you for it," he said with a serious tone. Yuffie felt as if she had shrunk by his crimson gaze, and slowly nodded as her cheeks began to feel very warm. Vincent pushed himself off of the wall away from her. "Let's get back to the others," he said, the turned and walked off. Leaving a breathless Yuffie to slide herself downward against the wall and sits on the ground, with her heart racing madly. She slowly placed her hand flatly over her beating heart. _Wha-...what was that?_ She asked in her thoughts.

...

Vincent and Shelke aboard the Shera, with Yuffie following a bit far behind. "Finally! The hell took you guys so long!?" said Barret. "Sorry," said Vincent, with not much meaning to it. "Tch!" Barret scoffs. "So what did he say?" asked Cid. Vincent explained all of the details Gerald provided them about Schwartz and his relationship to Gerald and Lucrecia. Of course, Cid, Barret, and Cait Sith kept interrupting with their 'What!?'s and their 'No way!'s. "Now we know why he created the ZICON...I can't help but pity him," said Tifa, looking sympathetic. "Pft! Shit! All this over a love tragedy!?" said Barret. Tifa gave him a death glare, which shut him up fast. Red XIII sighed. "So what's the plan?" he asked. "Simple. We chase after Schwartz, rescue Lucrecia, and put a stop to him and his ZICON," said Cloud. Everyone looked at each other and nodded in agreement. "Where do we even start looking?" asked Cid, mainly because he was the pilot. "Schwartz's lab base I found Yuffie in. There's a chance he went back since he still wanted to make use of Yuffie," said Vincent. "Then let's get going. Just tell me the directions," said Cid.

Meanwhile, Schwartz had taken Lucrecia to another one of his lab bases. He wanted to run some tests on her to clarify if she had really forgotten everything. He had her laid on a flat scanning table while he did his tests with him computers and operating mechanics. _She couldn't have really lost her memory..could she_? he thought while he worked.

 **A/N:**

Next chapter will be up tonight! Keep a lookout! Cx


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

The team lands near the lab building Vincent had found Yuffie in, and he discusses with them where he last saw Schwartz go. Assuming that Lucrecia was with him. That was when the realization that the resurrection worked hit Vincent hard. He remembered Schwartz talking as if he was being a gentlemen. To a lady. And since Lucrecia wasn't in the lab room, that meant he successfully resurrected Lucrecia. All this time they had been wondering if he succeeded or not, and he somehow didn't think to piece things together. "Well damn! Now we know for sure Yuffie is a miracle. But still..," said Cid. Awkward silence filled the air. "Let's get going. We won't find them just by standing around," said Red XII. "A-greed!" said Cait Sith. They get back on the Shera and Cid pilots it in the direction Vincent saw Schwartz driving.

A few nights go by, and they still hadn't found any clues to their whereabouts. Lately, Tifa had been noticing Yuffie getting up out of bed every night, and coming back to the bedroom so early in the morning. She couldn't help wondering what she might have been doing, so she devised a plan to stay up and spy on her at night. She waits until nightfall, and everyone falls asleep. A few hours go by, and she hears Yuffie get up out of the bed and leave the room. Tifa quietly gets up, and sneaks on after Yuffie. Yuffie walks warily, holding her stomach as if to vomit. _The Shera isn't even moving. There's no way she's having motion-sickness_ , Tifa thought with a frown, but continued to follow Yuffie. Yuffie hurriedly makes her way to the top and flops over the rail, vomiting blood. Tifa gasps and covers her mouth. Yuffie continues coughing and vomiting more blood. Tifa watches her in hiding, horrified and extremely worried. Yuffie breathes heavily, clutching her stomach tightly and gripping the rail as she lets her head hang over, blood dripping from out of her mouth. Yuffie doesn't vomit any more blood, but she ends up fainting. Tifa quickly rushes over to her with panic. "Yuffie!" Tifa shakes her, but Yuffie doesn't budge. She just wobbles around like a rag doll. Tifa wraps Yuffie's arm around her neck and tries to stand her up to carry her over to the bathroom. She sets her down, then grabs a wet rag to clean up Yuffie's face. When she finishes, the lays Yuffie back onto the bed and covers her with the blanket. Then she grabs another wet rag and goes to clean up the trail of blood that was left from it dripping out of Yuffie's mouth when she took her to the bathroom. When she's done, Tifa sighs tiredly, washes the rags, and makes her way to her own bed, then goes to sleep.

…

Vincent had been noticing Yuffie looking paler and paler by the day. As the group was walking along a narrow path to scout their surroundings, Tifa suggests they split up, and use their walkie talkie if they found anything. Vincent decides he'd stick with Yuffie. The team splits up, and begin scouting. Vincent decides it's a good time to ask Yuffie since no one else was around. "Yuffie," he calls to her. She says nothing. "Yuffie," he says again. Yuffie looks as if she's in a trance. Vincent grabs her by the wrist. "Yuffie!" he calls, breaking her out of her trance. "Huh?" she finally responds, then looks down at the wrist Vincent was holding. "What's going on? You look too pale," said Vincent as he let go of her. Yuffie looks away. "It's nothing. I'm fine," she says, then starts walking again. Vincent just stands there watching her, as if she might simply drop dead. Then he starts walking after her.

Meanwhile, Schwartz and Lucrecia had returned back to the lab where he had Yuffie held, and grows furious when he finds that she's gone. He orders the ZICON to search for her and bring her back to him, no matter what it took.

The team regroups when the sun begins to set. "Man, are we just having bad luck or what!? We can't find shit!" Barret cursed. "For all we know, he could be constantly moving, and we keep missing him," said Red XIII. "It's possible, but I doubt he'd move about so quickly," said Cloud. Cid sighs frustratedly. "Looks like we're parked tonight. Again," he said.

Night falls and the group makes their way to their beds to sleep. Except Vincent and Yuffie. Yuffie sneaks out of the Shera and makes a campfire close by it. Vincent was on patrol aboard the Shera for the night. He spots Yuffie sitting in front of the campfire she made. Her legs curled up in front of her with her chin rested on her knees, and her hands out forward getting warmed up by the fire. Vincent grows curious as to why she's out there. By herself at that. He leans back against the wall and decides to keep an eye on her. Yuffie starts to hum some songs he had never heard of. Then she stops for a while, and eventually she starts to feel sick. Yuffie's face scrunches up a bit and she grabs hold of her stomach. Vincent gets off the wall and watches her stand up and run over to the bushes, where she vomits a lot of blood. Vincent jumps off the Shera and makes his way over to Yuffie. "Yuffie! What's wrong with you!?" he demands. Yuffie coughs. "I honestly *cough* don't know what is going on with me. *cough cough cough*" she coughs out a bit of blood, and breathes heavily. "This *huff huff* only happens *huffs* at night *huffs* and in dark places," she said, then vomits again. Vincent's immediate thought was the ZICON, since the situation sounded similar to theirs. It was like she was… "It's like I'm turning into a *cough* ZICON," said Yuffie, as if to finish his thought. Then she vomits more blood. Vincent just stands there watching her, feeling a bit helpless. "Vin?" Yuffie calls him. "Don't tell anyone about this, okay? I don't want this to worrying them and slowing everyone down," she said. Vincent says nothing, then turns around toward the Shera. "I'll try to find a way to put a stop to this," he said, then walks off back into the Shera.

Hours later after Yuffie feels better and cleans herself up, she falls asleep next to the campfire she had set up. Vincent watches over her from inside the Shera. Tifa had woke up with the feeling that Yuffie must've snuck away to vomit again. Instead she finds Vincent staring out the window at something. "Vincent?" She asks, as if she wasn't sure it was him. Vincent turns his head to her. "Do you know where Yuffie is?" Tifa asks him. Vincent looks back out the winder at Yuffie. "Down there," he answers. Tifa walks over to the window to see Yuffie lying on the ground, sleeping next to the campfire. She then sighs sympathetically. "She vomited more blood, didn't she?" she asks. Vincent looks surprised that she knew, but didn't say otherwise. "Yeah," he answers. "I noticed her getting up every night lately for some reason. It was yesterday night when I decided to follow her and I discovered her vomiting blood. She fainted when she was done, and I cleaned her up, then put her back to bed. I don't think anyone else knows about this," said Tifa. "So that's why I heard water," said Vincent. "Mm," Tifa nods. They remain quite for a moment, watching Yuffie sleep soundly. "I'm going to head back to bed," Tifa finally says, and begins to walk off. She stops mid path and turns back to Vincent. "Vincent," she calls to him. Vincent turns to her, giving her his attention. "Thanks for keeping an eye on her," Tifa says with a small smile. Vincent nods, and Tifa turns back around and heads to her bedroom.

When he turns back around, he sees a small group of ZICON sneaking up on Yuffie. One holding rope in it's hands, and others holding wooden clubs and guns. Vincent quickly makes his way off the Shera to rescue Yuffie. Before they manage to touch her, he shoots them and whacks them away, waking Yuffie in the process. She quickly grabs her large Shuriken and prepares to help, but the ZICON start to turn back, leaving Vincent and Yuffie speechless for a moment. "Let's follow them!" Yuffie proposes. Vincent nods, and they do so.

 **A/N:**

My goal for the day has been reached! It's 15 mins until midnight! Congrats to me! *^* I'm not sure if I will be able to post the next chapter tomorrow morning, but I will surely try to have it posted in the afternoon or the evening. Thank you for reading, hope you're enjoying the story so far!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:**

Hi guys! Boy, did I have a busy day with some unexpected events! I'm beat! Anyways, I knows it's pretty late but, as promised, here's the next chapter! Thank you for your patience!

 **Chapter 9:**

Vincent and Yuffie follow the ZICON in stealth. Vincent soon detects an odd aura as they keep moving. A ZICON suddenly stops, then turns around as if he heard something. Vincent and Yuffie quickly hide before it could see them. The ZICON turns back around and continues walking. Vincent peeks out from behind the tree to see if it was still looking, then he nods to Yuffie, indicating they were clear. The group of ZICON stop as if waiting for something. Suddenly, a large shield reveals itself before the ZICON, and makes a large opening in front of them. The ZICON begin walking through the opening, and once they were all in, it closed. Vincent and Yuffie exchange a look, then make their way to the spot the group of ZICON had stood. "Why would a shield be out here in a place like this?" Yuffie asked. Before Vincent could say anything, the shield revealed itself before them, and made a large opening. Vincent and Yuffie look at each other again, then walk inside it, where they are greeted by the growls of ZICON before them. Vincent sighs frustratedly as he pulls out his gun.

"Vincent! Look over there," Yuffie points to their left at a large, metal building that was shaped rather cube-like. There were two chimneys on top and three cylinder-shaped tanks attached to the side of the building, each with steam and gas seeping out the tops. The door however, was left wide open. "That looks a lot like that other lab base Schwartz had me and Lucrecia in," said Yuffie. "Then this most likely is another one of his bases. The shield would explain why we hadn't found it in so long. He must be here," said Vincent. More ZICON appeared, with their loud growls and roars. "What is all this racket! I'm trying to focus here!" a man's voice could be heard from the building. "That voice...," said Yuffie as she takes a step forward. The man then steps out to see what was going on. "Schwartz!" Yuffie recognizes. Schwartz's eyes widen when he sees her. "You!" he spouts. "Where's Lucrecia?" Yuffie asks. Schwartz ignores her question and looks at Vincent, then frowns. "Haven't I seen you somewhere before?" he asks. "Who cares? Answer her question," says Vincent. Schwartz says nothing, but turns his gaze back on Yuffie. The ZICON turn to Schwartz as if waiting for an order. "Well? What are you all waiting for!? Get her!" he yells at the ZICON, then they begin charging towards Yuffie, and Schwartz walks back inside the building.

Yuffie and Vincent of course, having been fighting the ZICON quite a lot, had no problem taking them all down. Before you knew it, they were already inside the building. Guess who they found lying on the scanning table next to Schwartz. "Lucrecia!" Yuffie rushes over to her. "I can't believe it! She really is alive!" she says. "How did you get in here to quickly!?" Schwartz yells. Vincent quickly aims his gun at his head. "Not another step," Vincent said slowly. "Come on, let's get you out of here," Yuffie helps Lucrecia off of the table and begins leading her towards the doorway. "No! You can't take her!" Schwartz tries to grab Yuffie's arm, but Vincent presses his gun against his head. "I said don't move," he said. "Wait! Please! You can't do this!" Schwartz said as he held stepped back and bumped into his desk. "Whatever you planned on doing with Lucrecia is canceled. We're taking her back. It would do you good to keep your distance," said Vincent. But as he did, Schwartz had secretly sled his hand underneath his desk and held it over a large button. He smiled evilly when he found the button. Vincent narrowed his eyes at him, and Schwartz pressed the button. A tile from the ceiling then opened, with a laser gun popping out of it, charging up and aimed at Yuffie. Vincent quickly shoots at the gun, so it couldn't fire. Schwartz used that distraction to kick Vincent out the building through the doorway. Before Vincent could stand shoot at him, Schwartz pulls a switch that shut the door and barricaded it with a metal wall. Yuffie turns around to see Vincent facing the door. "Vincent! Come on!" she called to him. Vincent slowly stepped back, still facing the door, then turned around and made his way over to Yuffie and Lucrecia, helping them get to the Shera safely. Schwartz however, was not very happy. "Damn those twerps!" He yelled, knocking scientific equipment and mechanics off of his desk. "I'll kill those bastards!" he yelled angrily as he slammed his fists onto his desks.

…

Tifa had been pacing back and forth outside the Shera, worried that something happened to Yuffie and Vincent. She had heard Vincent's gunfire and went to find him, but he was gone, along with Yuffie. "I'm sure they're fine. Calm down already," said Cid, then yawned. Tifa had woken everyone up after she saw Vincent and Yuffie were gone. "What if they aren't? If we went and searched for them we probably could've found them already," said Tifa. "Come on! What could possibly take them down so easily?" said Cait Sith. Shelke dozes off and leans onto Red XIII. "I can understand you worrying about Yuffie, but Vincent? Since he's with her, there's no way in hell they'd go down," said Barret. "In case you've forgotten, the last time we had faith in that thought, Yuffie was _kidnapped_ right underneath his nose and almost _died_ ," said Tifa, with her fists on her hips. "That was then, this is now," said Cloud. Before Tifa could retort, the sound of bushes ruffling startled her, and she whirled around in the direction of the noise. Vincent and Yuffie soon walked through them. "See! I told you they were fine!" said Cid. Then they noticed Lucrecia standing in between Vincent and Yuffie. "Lucrecia!?" the group said in unison, clearly shocked. Lucrecia however, looked completely lost. "Are you…talking to..me?" she asked. The group looks surprised by her question. Tifa takes a couple steps toward her. "You are Lucrecia…right?" she asked. "I….I don't know," said Lucrecia, looking down. Yuffie walks up to her and looks her in the eyes. "You don't remember who you are?" she asks. Lucrecia then looks thoughtful, and slowly forms a small frown. "I don't remember anything at all," she finally said. Silence filled the air.

Tifa then gives her a small smile. "Let's get you inside. It's not safe out here," she said. Lucrecia looks up at her. "Okay," she replies, and heads inside the Shera with the rest of the group. Tifa takes her to her bedroom and has her sleep for the night. Shelke, Yuffie and Vincent stand quietly nearby. Each with thoughts of their own on the matter. Yuffie holds up her hand as if to inspect it. "Maybe…. it's a side effect from using my power to bring her back to life," she said, resulting in Vincent and Shelke looking at her. "But…we don't know exactly how your power works," said Shelke. "Neither does it make sense for your power to be able to do such a thing to begin with. It's already surprising enough it can revive the dead," said Vincent, his arms crossed as his back is against the wall. "Can it? My 'power' was used by _force_ at the hands of someone we hardly know. For all we know, it wasn't my power that did all of the work," said Yuffie. Vincent and Shelke remained silent. Yuffie sighs. "I still haven't even figured out how to use it myself. I don't understand what it even is either," she said. "Let's not keep our minds on it too much. It seems true that Lucrecia has no memory of her lifetime before she passed away. Which makes her extremely vulnerable in many cases. We need to get her to safety and make sure she stays hidden from Schwartz. Who knows what he plans on doing with her," said Tifa, who had eavesdropped on their conversation. "Where do you suggest we take her?" asked Yuffie. "Right now, our best option is Edge. We can keep her with Marlene and Denzel," said Tifa. "Sounds like a good start," said Yuffie. "I'll go tell the others," said Tifa, and she was off.

…

They finally arrive in Edge and make their way into town. The group is soon spotted by Gerald as they make their way through town. "Hey! You're back! Did you find him?" Gerald hollers. The group exchange looks. "I'll take Lucrecia to my place. You guys can go on ahead," said Tifa, then turned to Lucrecia and holds her hand, leading her to 7th Heaven. The rest of the group make their way over to Gerald. They fill him in on the details of what happened since they last left. Gerald is quiet as he processes everything they said to him. "I thought I was hallucinating at first but, I guess that really was Lucrecia walking with you guys," he said. "Yeah! But… it's a bit saddening she doesn't remember anything," said Cait Sith. "Indeed…," said Gerald. _Unless it's temporary_ , he thought.

Meanwhile, Tifa had an extra room available for Lucrecia to use, so she gives it to her to keep. "You can stay here as long as you like. Be sure to ask Denzel and Marlene for help if you need anything," said Tifa. Lucrecia nods. "Thank you. I don't know how I can repay you," she said. Tifa smiles warmly. "No need. It's the least I can do," she says. Marlene then comes peeping in through the door. "Hi!" she greets them with a sweet smile. "Hello there. You must be Marlene," said Lucrecia. Marlene walks in and holds out her hand to her. "I am. What's your name?" she asks. Lucrecia take her hand. "My name is Lucrecia," she says as she shakes her hand. "It's a very pretty name. Nice to meet you!" said Marlene. "Denzel is sleeping right now. You'll meet him later," she adds. "I look forward to it," says Lucrecia with a smile. Tifa places her hands on her knees and looks Marlene in the eyes. "From now on, Lucrecia will be staying with us. She's lost her memory, so I want you to be helpful to her as much as you can. Okay?" she said. "Mm!" Marlene nods. "When Denzel wakes up, be sure to let him know too," Tifa adds. "Will do!" says Marlene. "I've got to head back to the others now. Give me a call if you need anything," said Tifa, then she left.

"Don't worry, Lucrecia. I'll help you try to get your memories back. Sometimes the memory loss is only temporary. So, it usually takes a good trip down memory lane to get them back. Luckily, I happen to know exactly who you are, so that makes things easy!" said Marlene. "Really?" Lucrecia asks, seeming very surprised. "Mhm!" Marlene then hops on the bed next to Lucrecia. She begins describing the things she remembered about Lucrecia's past. She told her about the place she worked and the things she did as a scientists. She even told her about Sephiroth, who was her son, and eventually told her about Vincent. As Marlene kept telling her the stories about her life, the images began popping into her head and piecing together bit by bit. Before she knew it, her memories were coming back to her, but it was giving her a very painful headache. She couldn't help screaming in pain. It didn't last very long though, but it did wake up Denzel, resulting in him rushing over to them to see what was going on. Lucrecia holds her hands tightly on her head as she breathes heavily with her eyes closed. "What's going on? Who is this?" Denzel asks. "This is Lucrecia. She had lost her memory, so Tifa brought her here and asked us to take care of her," said Marlene. Denzel kneels in front of Lucrecia and places his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. We're here. Can you tell us what's wrong?" he asks. Lucrecia's breathing slowed to normal pace, and she slowly opened her eyes. "Are you okay?" Marlene asks. Lucrecia slowly lets go of her head, and stares at her hands. "I…..I remember….," she whispers. "Huh?" Marlene didn't hear her. Lucrecia looks up at them, as if she had just been completely refreshed. "I remember _everything_!" she said.

Denzel and Marlene look at each other in shock. "I think we should take her back to Tifa," Denzel suggested. "Mm," Marlene nods. The gang however, was actually getting ready to leave. They had finished chatting with Gerald and promised him they'd bring Schwartz down as soon as possible. "I've got the Shera all fixed up and ready to go," said Cid. "I've got our Materia!" said Yuffie with her usual, cheery smile. Tifa laughs. "I think we've got everything. Let's go ahead and get going," she said, and they start heading towards the Shera.

"Wait!" a feminine voice shouts from behind them. They all turn to see Lucrecia heading towards them, with Marlene and Denzel right behind. "Lucrecia? What's wrong?" Tifa asks. "If you're leaving, I'm going with you. I have to speak with Schwartz!" said Lucrecia. "Why?" Yuffie asked in confusion. "Lucrecia got her memory back!" said Marlene. The group looks at Lucrecia in shock. "It's true. I have Marlene to thank for it. If she hadn't told me about my life, I don't think I would have ever remembered. I must thank you as well, Tifa, for bringing me to her," said Lucrecia. "But do you have any idea what Schwartz plans to do with you? He resurrected you using Yuffie," said Cid. "He did?" Lucrecia asked, looking at Yuffie. "How is that possible!?" she asked. "Don't ask me! I was kidnapped and put to sleep when he did it," said Yuffie. "Then all the more reason I must go see him. You're a human!" said Lucrecia. Yuffie went silent, and looked doubtful. Lucrecia noticed and felt confused. "You are human, aren't you?" she asked. "It doesn't matter," said Vincent, stepping out from behind the group. "Vincent..," Lucrecia looks up at him, as if not believing he was really there. "You're staying here. There's no telling what Schwartz would do to you once he gets you back. You've been granted the blessing of a second chance at living. Don't waste it," said Vincent. Lucrecia had nothing to say, as she saw his point. "You're right," she said. "What's in the past is in the past. I sincerely apologize for all of the mistakes I've made. I will stay here then, and start life anew. Instead of going back to my research days, I'll use my knowledge from it for good will. From this day forward, I shall be a doctor. To heal the wounded and cure the sick," said Lucrecia.

Tifa smiles, and walks up to her, then places a hand on her shoulder. "Will you watch over Denzel and Marlene for me?" she asked. Lucrecia smiles back. "I shall," she said as she nods. "Thank you," said Tifa. "But before you go," says Lucrecia, then walks over to Yuffie. "At least answer me this. What are you, if you're not human?" she asked. Yuffie looked thoughtful for a moment. Then looked Lucrecia in the eyes. "I honestly don't know….but, I do know what I _can_ be. And that's _myself_ ," she said, giving her a small smile, then walking off into the Shera. Lucrecia looked dumbfounded at first, but then smiled. "As you will always be," she said. "Red. Cait. You two stay with them," said Cloud. "Sure thing!" Said Cait Sith, and Red XIII nods. The two, Lucrecia, Marlene and Denzel give their farewells to the gang, and watched the Shera fly off. Lucrecia looks down at Marlene and Denzel. "How would you two like to be my personal assistants?" she asked. The two children looked at each other, then smiled and looked up at Lucrecia. "We'd love to!" said Marlene. Lucrecia smiles. "I'm glad to hear it. Let's gather some materials and turn my room into a medical room," said Lucrecia. "Yes ma'am!" Denzel and Marlene say in unison.

 **A/N:**

Look forward to the next chapter in the morning! I must warn you, it just might get intense. ;3


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:**

As promised, here's the next chapter. I start college today and my first class is in a few hours. So I'll be getting busy from this day forward. But I will do my best to submit more chapters as soon as I get free time. Thank you for taking the time to read as always and I hope you'll still support me! ^-^

 **Chapter 10:**

With Lucrecia, Red XIII, and Cait Sith left in Edge, Cid pilots the team on the Shera back over to Schwartz's last sighting. Cid calculated it would take them a couple hours to get there. But as the hour goes by, Yuffie begins feeling worse and worse. It wasn't even nighttime yet, and it wasn't motion sickness. Yuffie holds her stomach in pain and her head begins to hurt. She also starts to feel dizzy and almost topples over, but stops herself by planting her hand on the counter. Tifa saw her in the reflection of the window and turned around. "Yuffie?" Tifa called to her, catching everyone's attention. All eyes were on Yuffie as she slowly took wobbly steps. Then before you knew it, she fell on the floor. "Yuffie!" Tifa rushed over her with the gang right behind. Blood started seeping out of Yuffie's mouth. Tifa checks her pulse. "Whoa! What's wrong with her? Is she dyin'!?" said Barret. "I..I don't know. I can feel her pulse but it's very faint and she's extremely cold," said Tifa. "I can't tell what's wrong with her. She's been like this ever since we got her back. Only this time...she didn't vomit blood and this didn't happen at night," she added. Vincent walked over to her while Cid and Barret exchanged a look. "Why didn't you tell us about this before?" asked Cloud.

"Because Yuffie was only trying to be considerate. She asked us to keep this a secret because she didn't want this situation to happen," said Vincent as he kneeled next to Yuffie on one knee. "And it looks like it happened anyway...she couldn't fight it much longer," said Tifa. "Fight _what_ exactly? We don't even know what's causing it," said Barret. "Well, we don't have a doctor on the ship with us, and I don't think there's any nearby towns with one either," said Cid. Tifa then looked as if she was reminded of something. "Actually," she said as she stood and turned to Cid. "We do," she said. "Who?" Cid asked. "Lucrecia," said Tifa.

...

"So the plan is, we split up into two teams. Team 1, consisting of Vincent, Barret, and Cid, will take Yuffie to Lucrecia for help. While Team 2, consisting of me, Cloud, and Shelke, who will infiltrate Schwartz's base. Once Cid drops off Team 2, he'll take Team 1 back to Edge. Team 2 won't take action until we get a call from team 1 letting us know that made it back safely. Any questions?" said Tifa. They shook their heads. "None," said Cid. "Good. Let's get going then," said Tifa. Cid starts up the Shera and begins piloting her to Schwartz's secondary base. Tifa had Yuffie lying on her lap, brushing over her hair softly. "Just hang in there," Tifa whispers to her. It turns out they weren't too far away from the base. Cid lands the Shera a bit far from the base so that they would wouldn't be noticed. Tifa has Yuffie laid on the bed and has Vincent keep an eye on her. Team 2 gets off the Shera and goes into hiding. "Let's roll!" says Cid as he starts up the Shera again, and turns it around to head back to Edge.

A couple hours go by and Team 1 manages to make it back with no disruptions. Cid lands the Shera near 7th Heaven to save some time. Vincent picks up Yuffie bridal style and Team 1 gets off the Shera. Lucrecia is spotted holding a box of medical equipment with Denzel and Marlene tagging behind her, making their way towards 7th Heaven. "Lucrecia!" Cid hollers, getting her attention. "We need help!" he said as Team 1 walks over to her. "Bring her inside," Lucrecia nods and walks inside with the kids and Team 1 following behind. Red XIII and Cait Sith see them rushing in with an unconscious Yuffie in Vincent's arms. "Hey hey hey, what's going on!?" Cait Sith asks as he and Red XIII follow them. Lucrecia takes them to her room and sets the box down on the dresser. "Put her there," she orders, pointing at the bed as she digs around in the box for the Stethoscope. Vincent does as he is told and Lucrecia makes her way over to Yuffie. She checks her heart rate and presses her hand on Yuffie's face, feeling her coldness. "Poor Yuffie...," Cait Sith says in sadness. "She's getting worse by the minute. What happened to her?" she asks. "Not exactly sure. She's been like this since we got her back from Schwartz main base," said Vincent. Lucrecia slams her hand on the bed. "No! I need a proper analysis. What happened _before_ you got her back?" Lucrecia asked, worried she may be too late. Vincent recalled the events prior to him finding Yuffie. "It would be easier to explain if Yuffie was up. But, if I remember correctly, she said Schwartz injected her with something that put her to sleep," said Vincent. "What for?" Lucrecia asked. "To use her to resurrect you. Since she was blacked out, we don't know what he did to make it happen," said Vincent.

"And the first thing I remember when I woke up was seeing his face. It's faint but..I think I remember seeing her inside some sort of capsule," said Lucrecia. Vincent was silent. "Ugh! I need more clues!" Lucrecia banged her fist on the bed. "Are you sure she didn't come in contact with anything else? It doesn't have to be physically either," said Lucrecia. "Besides the ZICON, nothing," said Vincent. "ZICON..," Lucrecia looked deep in thought. She looks at Yuffie as if scanning her with her eyes. "At what rate has she been acting up?" she asks. "Nightly," Vincent answered. "Nightly? Is it that or just simply in the dark?" Lucrecia asked. "I believe so," said Vincent. "I wonder...," Lucrecia looks deep in thought once more. She tries to connect the possibility of Yuffie having the ZICON symptoms and Schwartz injecting her with something. "I don't think whatever Schwartz injected her with, simply put her to sleep. I think he had something else in it that started doing something to her body on the side. But to be sure, I need the DNA of a ZICON to compare," said Lucrecia. "You want a body part of a ZICON?" Vincent asked. "Yes. Even just a tiny piece will do. But I don't have the equipment on me to perform the proper tests for this," said Lucrecia. "Well, since I doubt Schwartz is gonna return to his main base, you can use that place to do your job," said Cid. "Yes! Thank you for reminding me! Let's do it," said Lucrecia, feeling grateful for the idea. "I'll go hunt down a ZICON and bring you the DNA," said Vincent. "I'm coming with," said Barret. "Thank you. Meet us in Schwartz's base," said Lucrecia.

So Vincent and Barret go off to hunt ZICON and Cid drives everyone else over to Schwartz's main base. Red XIII and Cait Sith decided to tag along, and Lucrecia had Denzel and Marlene stay home. Once they arrive, they rush Yuffie into the lab room and Lucrecia has Cid lay her in the Healing Tube. Lucrecia begins grabbing tools to use for the testing and starts running the computer and scanner. It didn't take too long for Vincent and Barret to find any ZICON. Especially since they had already killed enough as it is. but they managed to successfully complete their task and quickly make their way over to Schwartz's base. Lucrecia completes test after test on Yuffie's DNA and all of her symptoms. "We're back. We've got the DNA," says Barret as he and Vincent stride in. "Perfect timing!" Lucrecia says as she gets up and takes the container with the piece of a dead ZICON's body away from Vincent. She takes it out and begins running tests on it, and making comparisons with the results of Yuffie's tests. "How's it lookin'?" Cid asks. Lucrecia looks back and forth between the results, making note of the similarities. "From the looks of it, the results are starting to look the same," said Lucrecia. This was a shock to the boys' ears. "You mean...she's turning into a..ZICON!?" said Barret. "Ohh noo!" Cait Sith begins crying. "But...there's a couple things I don't understand about this," said Lucrecia. "What do you mean?" Vincent asked. "According to my analysis, Schwartz did indeed inject her with something other than what put her to sleep. But I can't identify what it is. I've never seen this virus before. On top of that, according to the tests I ran, the virus immediately takes effect and spreads extremely fast. Which means she should've became a ZICON within a day. Something in her is managing to resist the virus, but I can't find anything in her that's doing it," said Lucrecia.

Vincent frowns in thought at what she said. Then looks at Yuffie and begins to wonder. "Maybe..it's her powers," he said. "Powers?" Lucrecia asked, then looked thoughtful. "It could be possible but, we can't be too sure. We don't have the evidence to prove that. But either way, it looks like it can't resist the virus forever. I don't know how much longer it will be able to fight it. We need to find out what this virus is that's spreading through her so I can try to make the antidote," said Lucrecia. "And the only person who knows is Schwartz," said Cid. "Oh shit! We forgot to call them!" said Barret. "Well, do it now! And have them interrogate Schwartz while you're at it. Fill 'em in on what we found out," said Cid. Barret quickly pulls out his phone and dials Tifa's cell, which she immediately picks up. "Barret! Are you guys alright?" she asked. "Yeah, we're fine. Sorry about that. Listen. We found out Yuffie is infected with whatever makes ZICON become...well..ZICON," said Barret. "You mean she's turning into one!?" Tifa asks. "Apparently, but she's somehow managing to resist it. Lucrecia needs to know what the virus is so she can make a cure," said Barret. "Which I'm sure only Schwartz knows, since he's the one who created the ZICON," Tifa concluded. "Exactly," said Barret. "Alright! We'll get moving and let you know what he tells us," said Tifa. "Right!" Barret nods, and they hang up. "Now..we wait," said Barret.

"So Schwartz planned on killing her by turning her into a ZICON as a fail-safe," said Shelke. "It doesn't matter now. We just need to get the answer out of Schwartz before it's too late," said Tifa. "Let's go make this quick," said Cloud. Schwartz happened to be pacing around outside the base, most likely in the process of planning something new. Cloud and Tifa manage to sneak up on him, with Tifa managing to give him a good kick in the head. "What the hell!?" Schwartz yells as he tries to get up off the ground, but Cloud holds his sword close to his neck, preventing him from moving anything further. "What did you infect Yuffie with?" Shelke asked. "Heh! Isn't it obvious?" said Schwartz. Tifa kicks him the the stomach. "We're not here to play! Just tell us what it is!" Tifa demanded. Schwartz grunted from the impact and coughed. "It's Nighthowler Venom," he confessed. Shelke quickly pulls out her phone and dials Vincent. Vincent quickly picks up and puts her on speaker. "What is it?" he asks. "It's Nighthowler Venom," said Shelke, leaving shocked looks on everyone's faces. "Now it all makes sense. The acronym! Why didn't I see this before!? It was right under my nose this _entire_ time!" Lucrecia yells furiously. "I had only heard rumors of it but I never actually got to see it," she added. "So can you make the antidote?" asked Red XIII. "Yes! I can. I'll get started on it right away," said Lucrecia.

While Tifa, Cloud and Shelke were distracted by Lucrecia, Schwartz calls on his ZICON and once agains uses them as a distraction and makes his escape. "Damn it! We could have finished him off!" Tifa cursed after they kill off the ZICON. "Forget about it. Let's hurry back," said Cloud. Within 10 minutes, Lucrecia successfully manages to create the antidote to cure Yuffie. She fills up a needle with it, then injects it inside Yuffie on her arm. "Let's hope it works," said Lucrecia as she reaches up to grab the glass lid and closes it down on Yuffie, then activates the Healing Tube. Cid went off to pick up Team 2, while everyone else stayed with Lucrecia and Yuffie. Cid eventually makes it back with Team 2 and Tifa and Shelke rush in to see Yuffie. "Will she be okay?" Tifa asked. "I hope so. I've given her the antidote so we just have to wait and see how well it works," said Lucrecia. "Did you guys get rid of Schwartz?" Barret asked. "No...he escaped," said Shelke. "Damn.. Who knows where he's run off to now," said Barret. "Nevermind that! Our top priority is to make sure Yuffie is alright," said Cait Sith.

Lucrecia and Vincent watch over Yuffie for a whole day while everyone else headed back to Edge and made preparations. They discussed plans on what to do with Schwartz, and Gerald decides to join in on the discussion.

 **A/N:**

I will upload the next chapter when I next become available. Hopefully tonight! So keep a lookout! Cx


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

Gerald catches sight of the gang discussing their thoughts on Schwartz. He decides to greet them and ask about Schwartz. Tifa explains to him everything that happened since they had left, and it leaves Gerald speechless. "So now we're trying to figure out how we can possibly stop him," said Cid. "But just thinking about it…even if we did manage to kill Schwartz, what are we going to do about all of the ZICON. They keep reproducing just by tearing out the hearts of the dead or alive and feeding the corpses with their venom," said Shelke. "Unless…," Tifa began looking very thoughtful. "There's some kind of source," she said. "Yeah. If you forgot, the source is named Schwartz," said Barret. "No, I mean a different kind of source. We do know Schwartz is the one who started all this, but the question is _where_?" said Tifa. "I see what you mean. It's already been clear none of his bases are where he's doing it," said Red XIII. "But if it's not any of his bases, maybe it's a factory or something," said Cait Sith. "You'd think a factory would be the easiest thing to find. Normally they're huge," said Cloud. "Then if it really is a factory, he could have a shield up that's hiding it. Like he did with his secondary base," said Tifa. "So how about this then. Find that 'source' and get rid of all the ZICON, then kill Schwartz. It'd make the job easier. Get the hard stuff out of the way and the easiest that's left over becomes a piece of cake. Problem solved," said Gerald. The group exchanged approving looks. "Yeah. I don't think that's a bad idea. Let's do it!" said Tifa.

Meanwhile, while Yuffie was still unconscious, Lucrecia tried talking with Vincent. "How have you been all this time? You seem a bit different from what I remember," she said. Vincent said nothing. "I'm just curious. You've made some very good friends. It's no wonder your heart has changed a bit," said Lucrecia. Vincent still said nothing. "It really makes me wonder what you'd do if one of them died," said Lucrecia. That had caught Vincent off guard. "Tell me. What _would_ you do if Yuffie never wakes up again?" Lucrecia asked. That got Vincent thinking deeply. The thought of what he would do if Yuffie never woke up again hadn't crossed his mind at all. "Don't start giving me false hope," he said sternly. Lucrecia chuckled lightly. "Okay, I won't jinx it," she said. Before they knew it, Yuffie had started waking up by coughing. Which make Lucrecia and Vincent jump. Lucrecia rushed over to the healing tube and shut it off. Then she pulled up the glass lid so Yuffie could sit up. Lucrecia patted her on the back while she finished coughing. "Are you alright?" she asked her. "Ughh…," Yuffie's vision was blurring a bit since her eyes were still trying to adjust to the light. She shook her had as if trying to shake water out of her hair. Then she focused her eyes on Lucrecia, then Vincent, then the whole room. "Where am I?" she asked.

"We're in Schwartz's lab. After you passed out, your friends brought you to me so I could make you an antidote. How do you feel?" Lucrecia asked. Yuffie laid her hand over her stomach, then hiccupped. That brought surprised looks on Vincent and Lucrecia's faces. "Need some water?" Vincent asked. Yuffie hiccups again. "Yeah. I'll take some water," she said, then hiccupped again. "I think I'm okay. Just really hungry," said Yuffie, as Vincent gets her a glass of water, then hands it to her. "Are you sure you're alright?" he asks her before she starts drinking it. "Yeah. I don't feel sick anymore," said Yuffie, then starts drinking. "My my, Vincent. I've never seen you _this_ concerned before. Are you in _love_ with Yuffie?" said Lucrecia, trying to bite back a laugh. Vincent was caught off-guard by the question and almost tripped. Yuffie of course, almost choked and ended up spitting out the water. Yuffie coughs. "Are you crazy!?" Yuffie says while her faced turned red. Vincent refused to say anything. Lucrecia laughed. "I'm just teasing," she said. Yuffie and Vincent had blank looks on their faces while Lucrecia continued to laugh. "It was also to test your impulse. Your responsive system acted quite nicely which reassures me that you're alright," she adds. "I see...," said Yuffie. _Did she really have to use something like that?_ Vincent thought irritably.

Once Lucrecia relaxed, she had explained to Yuffie what was happening to her and how she was able to make the cure. Yuffie felt disgusted by the fact that she really was turning into a ZICON. "Well, regardless of how it happened, thanks for saving me," said Yuffie. Lucrecia nods with a soft smile. "Shall we take you to your friends? They've been waiting for you to wake up as well," she said. "I'll bet. Let's go see them," said Yuffie. Vincent helps Yuffie out of the tube, then the three make their way over to Edge to meet with the rest of the gang.

…

"Yuffie!" the gang called her in surprise to see her there. Tifa ran over to her and practically jumped on her, giving her the tightest hug. "Oh thank goodness you're alive!" Tifa said, almost in tears. Yuffie giggled and hugged her back tightly. Cait Sith had hugged Yuffie by her leg, practically in tears as well. "Welcome back Yuffie," said Red XIII. "And stop scaring us like that!" said Barret. "Chill man, she just came back and you already trying to scold her," said Cid. Yuffie laughed as Tifa finally let go of her. "I'm okay, really. Sorry I made you guys worry so much," said Yuffie. "Shit," said Barret, in a way of saying 'don't worry about it'. "What matters most is that you're alive, and you're safe, " said Red XIII. "Yeah," Tifa agreed. "Thanks guys," said Yuffie. "Ahem. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be heading back to my room," said Lucrecia. "Sure thing! Marlene and Denzel are in there waitin' for ya," said Cait Sith. Lucrecia gave them a small head bow, then left. "Want to start filling 'em in on the plan?" Cid asked Tifa, referring to Vincent and Yuffie. "Ah, right!" Tifa replied. She then began explaining how they planned on getting rid of all of the ZICON, and then killing Schwartz. Vincent and Yuffie looked thoughtful. "I don't think it's a bad idea," said Yuffie. "Okay. What if the plan doesn't succeed? What's plan B?" Vincent asked. That had everyone stumped. It was clear they didn't think that far. "W-well then we'll just, play it by ear," said Barret. "I really like your perception," Gerald complimented Vincent. Which, Vincent ignored. "Either way, we're putting a stop to them, one way or another," said Tifa. "If one plan doesn't succeed, we'll come up with another. Like we already have been," said Cid. "So enough of all this depressing shit and losing hope," said Barret. "We just have to make sure we're prepared. It never hurts to have back-up," said Yuffie. "Then we'll come up with something on the way. Problem solved," said Cait Sith. "Hmph. Suit yourself," said Vincent. "Now the question is, where do we start hunting the ZICON?" Yuffie asked. "Well, we do know they're only active wherever it's dark. So let's find a dark place and start from there," said Tifa. Everyone nodded in agree. "Godspeed, and be safe," Gerald bid them farewell. The gang said their goodbyes and headed off into the Shera. They land nearby Schwartz's main base and decide to go on foot from there. Since the Shera would make it harder for them to search if they were to stay airborne.

It turns out that finding a lot of the ZICON wasn't hard at all. There were plenty of dark areas around. Especially in the forest areas. As they were hunting the ZICON and killing them off, Red XIII started to notice that wherever they'd kill the ZICON was in the form of a path. Like they were following a trail and being led somewhere. Cloud, Shelke, and Vincent started to realize it too. But Shelke was feeling the most uneasy about it. She couldn't help feeling like they were being led into a trap, but didn't say anything. Despite some of the members of the group feeling off about it, they pressed on. Continuing to hunt down the ZICON even when nightfall hit. Which they expected it to sort of make things a bit complicated since they were bound to be everywhere. Cloud suggested they keep moving in the same direction they had already been going.

They never would have expected to come across a vast area with worn down buildings and skeletons of people and creatures who once lived in it. Of course, there were ZICON lurking around the place. Lots of them. As the gang walks around in the area, looking at their surroundings, thunder sounds off due to lightning flashing in the sky. It was quite loud hat it made Yuffie and Cait Sith jump. "Gosh this is giving me goosebumps!" said Yuffie, rubbing her arms up and down. "For now, let's get rid of these ZICON," said Cid. "Wait!" Shelke stopped the group. "Something's not right here," she said. "She's right. I can feel it too," said Red XIII. "What do you mean?" Barret asked. "It's too easy," said Vincent. Which had Barret looking confused. "The fact that we came to a place like this without any problems…it's too simple," Cloud elaborated. "So, you mean to say this is trap?" Tifa asked. "I think so," said Shelke.

"Right you are, my dear!" a voice suddenly spoke out from the gang's right. It was Schwartz who came walking out from the side of a worn-down house, holding a rifle over his shoulder. "Schwartz!" Tifa, Yuffie, and Cait Sith said in unison. "Hello hello~!" Schwartz greeted with a courtesy bow. "You tried to kill me by turning me into a ZICON! Now you're gonna pay!" Yuffie said as she whipped out her Shuriken, ready to throw at him. "Wait!" Vincent thrusts his arm out in front of her to stop her. "Vinnie!?" Yuffie says irritably. Schwartz give a small and low laugh, patting his shoulder with his rifle as he takes a few steps towards the group. "Before you start getting hasty, you might want to go according to your original plan and take care of my minions first. Don't you agree?" Schwartz said with an evil smile forming on his face. A large amount of ZICON appeared from all directions, with their growls sounding off with each step they took. But their growls wasn't the only thing that could be heard. Low growls that didn't sound like the ZICON could also be heard from behind the ZICON. This made the gang very uneasy. "Wh-who's making _those_ noises?" Cait Sith asked. Large creatures 3 times the size of the ZICON slowly came out of hiding and making their way through them. "Are those..beasts!?" Barret asked with confusion. "My new pets! The BICON! Pretty much the same as ZICON, but instead of Zombies, they're Beasts. Get it?" Schwartz giggles proudly. "You've gotta be kidding me..," said Cid. "We're in for some big trouble now," said Cait Sith, as the gang now had their backs against each other, surrounded by the ZICON. And the BICON.

 **A/N:**

I'm going to try to post the next chapter or two by the end of the night, so keep a lookout! :D


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

"How the hell did he manage to get _Beasts_ in his army!?" Barret asked out of frustration. "More like where the hell did they _come from_ in the first place. I ain't _ever_ seen any beasts of _that_ size _anywhere_ ," said Cid. "No wonder it was too simple. He was ambushing us," said Shelke. "You sneaky bastard!" Cait Sith fumed. Schwartz laughed. "Bastard. That has a nice ring to it," Schwartz chuckled. Red XIII growls at him. "Now listen. We don't have to do this you know. Just hand over Lucrecia and we can go our separate ways. How does that sound?" said Schwartz. "Like _hell_ we are!" said Yuffie. "Well then, have it your way. Let's get this over with, shall we?" said Schwartz, then he snapped his fingers, and the ZICON and BICON charged at the gang. The BICON, being quicker than the ZICON, were the first to attack and managed to split the gang. "Goddamn it! These guys are tough!" Cid cursed as he tried to get up from being knocked to the ground. Tifa was also knocked down, and tumbled over to a nearby building. Schwartz's gaze fell to her, and then smiled. " _You_ , my dear, I believe I owe a little debt to," he said as he walked over to her while she tried to get up. Before she managed to get on her feet, Schwartz landed a hard kick to her stomach, making her yell out in pain. "Feel familiar?" Schwartz asked, then kicked her again. "I'm not here to play. Just tell me where Lucrecia is," Schwartz mocked, then kicked her in the face. "Tifa!" Cloud called out and quickly slashed through ZICON to get to her. "Having fun yet? I know I am," Schwartz giggles, then kicks her again. Cloud almost slashes Schwartz with his sword, but Schwartz dodges it and jumps out of the way, laughing. Tifa coughs out a bit of blood, clutching her stomach tightly in pain. "Tifa!" Cloud drops his sword and sits her up.

The gang was split into three groups. Tifa and Cloud made one. Yuffie, Cait Sith and Shelke made another, and Cid, Vincent, Barret and Red XIII made the last. "Man! How the hell do we _kill_ these things!?" Barret asked, blocking an attack from a BICON. The groups continue having a hard time fighting the BICON while Schwartz laughs his ass off. When he gets done laughing, his eyes fall on Yuffie. "Now then," he starts to say as he loads up his gun. "For our main attraction," he said. With the gang all distracted by the incoming BICON and ZICON, Schwartz slowly aims and readies his rifle at Yuffie. Yuffie, having sensed him, quickly turns his direction and throws her Shuriken at him right when he fires at her. "Whoa there!" Schwartz had barely managed to dodge her Shuriken. "Damn you, woman!" he said, and shoots Yuffie again. The gunfire made everyone stop what they were doing, as if they had frozen. All eyes were now on Yuffie and Schwartz smiles evilly.

Yuffie doesn't move. She slowly looks down at where he had shot her. One bullet had went through her just above her belly button, and the other below her breast on the right. "NOO!" Tifa yells in horror at the sight, and tries to get up, but Cloud won't let her. Yuffie raises her shaking hand and lays it over the bullet wound above her belly button while she slowly looks back up at Schwartz. "YOU ROTTEN SON OF A BITCH!" Barret begins cursing non-stop at Schwartz. Schwartz just laughs away. Vincent begins making his way over to Yuffie from behind Schwartz. Schwartz see him and aims his rifle once again at Yuffie, making Vincent freeze. "One. More. Step. And it's her heart," Schwartz threatens. Then Schwartz gets an idea and aims his gun at Vincent. "Unless you'd rather _die with_ her," he said.

Yuffie is then frightened for Vincent's life. She slowly turns to him, then looks at Schwartz's rifle, then back at Vincent. Yuffie starts to shake her head slightly. "N-No…don't..don't do it," she begs. "Oh I think I will," said Schwartz, his rifle still aimed at Vincent. Yuffie begins making her way toward Vincent, wobbling with each step she takes. "P-..please…don't…," she says. "Yuffie," Vincent says sternly, as if telling her to stop. Tifa watches her, shakenly with tears streamed down her face. Yuffie keeps moving towards Vincent. "Please…don't hurt him," she pleads as she starts to move faster. "Yuffie..oh I can't watch!" Cait Sith covers his face. "Yuffie! Stay back!" Vincent warns. "Time's up. Time to say bye-bye," says Schwartz as he puts his finger over the trigger. "No!" Yuffie shouts and runs to Vincent. "Yuffie!" Vincent calls. Schwartz shoots just as Yuffie's hands start to glow and with massive force, pushes Vincent out of the way and takes the bullet. Vincent is flown back two feet away and lands on the ground.

The bullet had went through Yuffie's chest, just below her breast, right at the center. Schwartz starts laughing hysterically and twirls as if he'd won victory. "So long, suckers! AHH HAHAHAHA!" He says as he walks off with the ZICON and BICON falling back to follow him. The team is left scattered and still, watching as Yuffie falls to the ground, and Tifa screaming for her fallen friend.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

It starts to rain heavily, soaking everyone as they stared at Yuffie lying on the ground. Vincent slowly gets up and stares blankly at the fallen Yuffie. Cait Sith starts to cry, and Shelke hugs him to comfort him. Tifa begins crying as well, clutching Cloud's arm tightly. Yuffie tries to look around at her saddened and heartbroken friends. Vincent starts to take slow steps towards Yuffie, as if in a daze. Yuffie slowly and hazily turns her gaze to the approaching Vincent. Her breathing starting to quicken. The soaked Vincent dreadfully falls onto his knees before her, and slowly lifts her into his arms, relaxing her head in his left elbow. Yuffie looks up at him and catches his dark crimson eyes. She could see pain through them. Yuffie slowly lifts her right hand and places it on the left side of his face. "Don't go blaming yourself. I only wanted to protect you," she tells him. Vincent says nothing but keeps his gaze on her eyes. Yuffie smiles sweetly at him.

"I remember the first time we met. Like it was yesterday," she starts to say as she looks up at the sky. "After all this time… look where we are now," she said. Yuffie couldn't tell if there were tears were falling from Vincent's pained eyes due to the rain. Tears started to seep out of the corners of her eyes. She had hoped he couldn't see hers through the rain. She wanted to tell him her feelings. But she couldn't find the will to do it. Blood had started to leak out of the side of her mouth, but the rain quickly rinses it off of her face. Yuffie's breathing was starting to slow. Cold rain continued to fall over the two. Yuffie looks deeply into Vincent's beautifully crimson eyes. She could never get tired of those eyes. Her hand still laid over the side of his face. "Vincent," she calls him, wanting to tell him something. "I…. I," She couldn't bring out any more words due to her losing her strength. Blood from her bullet wounds leaking out of her body non-stop. Still gazing into his eyes, her hand slowly falls from his face, and slumps into her stomach. Then she starts to close her eyes as she slowly loses consciousness.

"Yuffie," Vincent calls her. Her eyes don't open. "Yuffie!" he shakes her. She still doesn't budge. The gang lowers their heads in sorrow. Vincent becomes hasty, not wanting to accept Yuffie dying. He tries to think of a way to possibly save her. He had lost someone he cared about before. He was not about to lose another. He could only think of one possibility that could save her. He lays Yuffie flat onto the ground, then takes his golden clawed hand and pierces the index finger into his right arm deeply. He squints from the pain, then pulls out his golden finger now covered in his blood. "Vincent! What are you doing!?" Shelke asks, almost wanting to stand. Vincent sucks out as much blood as he can from out of his arm before it regenerates. He lifts Yuffie into his left arm and brushes her hair from out of her face. He pulls her face close to his with his hand and closes the gap between their lips, feeding her his blood mouth to mouth. The gang watches him in shock, completely speechless to what he was doing. Yuffie swallows it all but still remains unconscious. Vincent parts his lips from hers and wipes the leaked blood off their cheeks. Then watches her face as if she would wake back up any minute.

…

The team returns to Edge highly depressed, and Yuffie is brought to Lucrecia, once again. "What happened to her _this_ time!?" Lucrecia asks with surprise and serious concern as Vincent lays her on the bed. Vincent says nothing. Lucrecia switches her gaze from him to Yuffie as she makes her way over to her and gasps at the sight. "Schwartz," said Vincent, since Lucrecia looked as if she was about to ask 'who' or 'what' did this. "How!? This is _three_ bullets I'm counting. How did he manage to shoot her so many times?" Lucrecia asks as she runs her hands over the bullet wounds on Yuffie. Vincent turns away and sits on a nearby chair. Lucrecia sighs with her eyes closed, dangling her head. She gets up and starts grabbing some tools to try to dig the bullets out of Yuffie. "Leave. I'll call you when I'm done," she says to Vincent while she grabs the tools, refusing to look at him. Vincent remains in the chair, looking up at Lucrecia, then at Yuffie. Once Lucrecia has the tools, she finally turns to Vincent and gives him a serious look. "Leave. Now." she says sternly. Vincent looks down, and finally gets up, while Lucrecia turns back to Yuffie. Vincent gets a quick glance at Yuffie, then leaves the room and shuts the door behind him.

Vincent and the others wait outside the doorway for about two hours. Tifa and Cait Sith sniffing from their silent cries here and there. Lucrecia finally opens the door and leans against the doorway with her arms crossed as everyone immediately stands. "Vincent," she says, in a way of saying only he could go inside. Vincent makes his way over and Lucrecia moves out of the way. "How is she?" Tifa asks her, still holding her stomach. Lucrecia just bows her head and closes the door behind her, practically telling them to wait. The group exchanges looks and quickly, but quietly, makes their way over to the door and presses their ears against it. Except Cloud, Shelke and Red XIII of course. Vincent stands in front of the bed, staring at a bandaged Yuffie lying still on the bed. "Sit down," said Lucrecia as she sat at her desk. Vincent looks at her, then sits in the chair that was in the corner on the opposite side of the room from Lucrecia. Lucrecia turns to him from her computer screen with a slow sigh. "So tell me. Before I start giving you results, explain to me what exactly happened," she said. Vincent was quiet, trying to come up with a proper explanation. "You can take as long as you need. But no details left behind," said Lucrecia. Vincent didn't dare look up at her, but soon began to explain.

"After you left to go see Marlene and Denzel, we came up with a plan to put a stop to the ZICON. We were going to start hunting them down in hopes of finding the source, and once we took care of that, we planned on killing Schwartz. Little did we know, he found out about our plan, and we fell into his trap. He somehow managed to create BICONs. They're the same as the ZICON, but instead of zombies, they're large beasts," Vincent began. Lucrecia was shocked at the news. "BICON?" she said with a frown. "It turned out to be an ambush. He asked us to hand you over or he'd get rid of us. We declined, so he had the ZICON and the BICON start attacking us. The BICON had managed to separate us, and we had a hard time fighting them. We couldn't find their weakness and figure out how to kill him. Schwartz used that as a distraction and shot Yuffie right when she threw her weapon at him," Vincent continued. _That's one_ , Lucrecia thought. "He barely managed to dodge her weapon, and shot Yuffie again for it," Vincent added. _That's two_ , Lucrecia counted in her head. "I tried to go help her, but Schwartz threatened he'd shoot her through the heart if I moved another step," said Vincent. Lucrecia almost thought 'three' but realized he said 'threatened' and that the third bullet wound was not where Yuffie's heart was. "Then he aimed his rifle at me asking if I wanted to die with Yuffie. Yuffie got scared and started begging him not to shoot while she started walking over to me," said Vincent.

"And I'm guessing he didn't listen and shot anyway, but Yuffie managed to push you out of the way and took the bullet," Lucrecia concluded. "Yes. But if it wasn't for her powers, I wouldn't have budged," Vincent added. "Her powers?" Lucrecia asked in confusion. "When she pushed me, her hands were glowing. I'm guessing by will, it increased her strength so she was strong enough to push me out of the way. While I was flying back, I saw the mark of the Star of Lakshmi on both of her hands before I fell," said Vincent. "The Star of Lakshmi..," Lucrecia frowned with her hand on her chin. _Ones who hold the power of good will in their hearts by the Star of Lakshmi….I thought that was only a myth_ , Lucrecia thought deeply. "If I remember correctly, Schwartz wanted Yuffie because she has that power. Could he possibly know what her power is?" said Lucrecia. "No one knows what it is as far as I know," said Vincent. "I was also told Yuffie had it when she was little, but lost it when her mother passed away. And now it's back? What does this mean?" Lucrecia asks, mostly to herself. Vincent had nothing to say. Lucrecia shakes her head as if to remove those thoughts. "Anyway. What happened after that?" she asked. "Schwartz took off. Yuffie was dying. I wanted to save her…," Vincent stopped. He was fighting with himself on whether he should tell her what he did or not. "And..? What did you do?" Lucrecia asked. Vincent remained quiet. Lucrecia sighed. "Vincent, I have a pretty good idea what you did. I saw it in her blood. But I want to hear you say it," she said.

That took Vincent by surprise. If she had figured it out, why bother asking him. But Vincent knew better. She needed the confirmation, and he along with everyone else waiting outside the door needed to know the results. Whether Yuffie would be okay, or if she was gone. Vincent finally looked up at Lucrecia. Hesitant about saying it. "Vincent. You _know_ who I am. You _know_ you can tell me _anything_ ," said Lucrecia, as if to encourage him to spit it out. Vincent finally gave in. He knew he couldn't win this. Lucrecia looked as if she knew what he was thinking, but waited patiently for his answer. "I…," Vincent sighed, closing his eyes. "I made her drink some of my blood," he finally confessed. "Just like I thought," Lucrecia said quietly, then turned back to her computer screen. Examining the test results she got from running some quick tests on Yuffie. "Before I start giving my own explanations, do you have anything else you need to mention?" Lucrecia asked, scanning Vincent's facial expression. Vincent shook his head. She could tell he was telling the truth. "Okay then," she said as she stood up and placed her hand on Yuffie's forehead, checking her temperature. After she removed her hand, she faced Vincent. "Come touch her," she ordered. Vincent tried to read the expression on Lucrecia's face, but couldn't identify the look. He slowly stood and made his way over to Yuffie. He pressed his right hand on her forehead, and she felt very warm. Which took Vincent by surprise.

"She's..warm," he said. "Indeed. Want to take a guess as to why she's getting warmer?" Lucrecia asked him. Vincent looked thoughtful, trying to come up with an idea of why she was so cold only two hours ago, but now so warm. "Do you know what's happening to her body?" Lucrecia asked him. "….No. I don't," Vincent answered honestly. Lucrecia then started to remove Yuffie's bandages, revealing her bare stomach. "What do you see?" Lucrecia asked as she put away the bandages. Vincent was completely speechless. The bullet wounds that Yuffie had were no longer there. "The wounds. They're…gone," he said, as if not believing it. "Correct. _Now_ can you guess why that is?" Lucrecia asked once again. "What does this remind you of?" she added. Vincent had finally realized what had happened. Lucrecia could read the expression on his face, but waited for him to say it. Vincent slowly sat on the edge of the bed next to Yuffie, gazing at her calm-looking face. _It….worked_ , he thought. He could still hardly believe it. Lucrecia started to form a small smile, watching Vincent's surprised reaction. "I didn't…..I didn't think…it would actually work," he finally spoke. "Well," Lucrecia sat down in her chair next to her desk. "Perhaps miracles really _do_ exist..even though your actions were quite dangerous," she said.

Then Vincent started to realize something else. His blood had indeed saved her. But did it fuse with Yuffie's blood? Lucrecia noticed the change in Vincent's expression. "I bet now you're wondering what more your blood did to her," she said. Vincent turned to Lucrecia. "Now I can start telling you the results," said Lucrecia. Vincent stood from the bed and turned his body around to completely face Lucrecia. Waiting to hear what she had to say. "As you may have probably guessed, your blood did indeed fuse with hers. That being said, it does mean that she now has acquired all of your enhanced traits. Regeneration being one of them as you have just witnessed. So, in a way, you could say she's become your 'species'. If you know what I mean," Lucrecia began explaining. Vincent looked back at Yuffie. Vincent was unsure if he should be happy about it or worried. Mainly because he never considered Yuffie's feelings about it. In his eyes, he was a monster. And that monster had just fed her his blood in hopes of saving her life. "I know what you're probably thinking. But what we need to be more concerned about right now is how this might affect Yuffie's power," said Lucrecia. The look on Vincent's face made it clear he hadn't thought about that either. Which made him feel…stupid. He was so intent on saving Yuffie's life, he didn't bother to think of the consequences. "You're not an idiot if that's what you're thinking," Lucrecia said, reading his mind. "You did what you thought was best. _Anyone_ would do anything to save the life of someone they care about. It's not a bad thing. She was on her death bed and there was nothing else you could do. You did what you could, and that's what matters. As you can see, she's not dead," said Lucrecia, trying to comfort him.

Vincent said nothing. "Her death is now something we don't have to worry about," Lucrecia added. "And what about mine?" Vincent retorts. Now it was Lucrecia who was silent. "You _know_ I can't die. _Yuffie_ knows that. But she still protected me," said Vincent. "And why do you think she did?" Lucrecia asks him, testing his knowledge. Vincent remained quiet. "You may not realize it, but something like that is the _last_ thing someone would think about when it comes to death. When it comes to _love_. Yuffie's fear of you getting hurt and dying made her _forget_ what you are. All she cared about was your safety and she was willing to risk her _life_ for you. It's no different when you compare it to a mother's love," said Lucrecia. Vincent had nothing to say. "And besides. This may actually be a good thing anyway," she added. Vincent looked at her like she was crazy. "How so?" he tested. "Think about it. Let's say you took the bullet anyway, and survived. The result is still the same. Yuffie had already taken _two_ bullets you weren't able to prevent. She still was dying, and you still would have did the exact same thing to try to save her. Regardless of whether Schwartz would leave, or shoot her again, and then leave," said Lucrecia. Vincent looked down, knowing she was right. "Either way, the fact that she's drunk your blood and is slowly transforming into what you are, guarantees her eternal life. You'll never have to worry about her dying ever again," said Lucrecia. Vincent looked up at Yuffie once more, letting Lucrecia's words sink in deeply. He knew she was right. But there was still the matter of Yuffie's feelings about it, and what impact it might have on the powers she was already born with. Would she still have her powers? Would it fuse with the blood enhancements and make her even more powerful than ever? Or would it completely erase her powers from existence?

Yuffie stays on bed rest so Lucrecia can keep an eye on her progress. Vincent had walked out of the room to explain everything to the gang, and of course since they had already heard everything through the door, they acted like they were relieved. Even though they really were, but had some questions flowing through their heads they didn't bother asking. Vincent went back into the room and remained by Yuffie's side, watching over her. Eventually, Lucrecia asks him to run to a shop and get her the supplies she ordered recently. They were supposed to be delivered there for her to pick up by then. Vincent nods and leaves to go get her supplies. Not too long after he leaves, Yuffie finally starts to wake up. Lucrecia rushes to her side as Yuffie groans while waking up. Yuffie's body aches a bit, but that was due to her body still adjusting to the enhancements thanks to Vincent's blood fusing with hers. Her DNA had to change because of it, and that's where all the adjusting came in. But soon enough, the pain ceased. Yuffie noticed she could see things much, much more clearer than ever before. She started to think she was dreaming. Lucrecia gave her some water and asked how she felt. "Awkward…and confused," Yuffie replied honestly. "I'll bet you are," Lucrecia said, expecting that kind of answer from her. But she couldn't help noticing Yuffie's eyes. They were silver, instead of the light brown she normally had. "I thought I died…. What happened?" Yuffie asked. Lucrecia explained what Vincent did to save her life, and how his blood and DNA fused with hers to where she had all of Vincent's enhanced traits. This was an extreme shock to Yuffie. She never expected Vincent to do something like that, and she hardly expected it to work. To the extent where she had become just like him. Like Vincent, she was unsure of whether she should be happy about it, or worried. She didn't realize she had said it out loud because Lucrecia had started to laugh. "You'd be surprised Vincent thought the exact same thing," she said.

"R-Really?" Yuffie asked as if she didn't believe it. "Heh heh, yes," Lucrecia replied. "Oh… well, where's Vincent anyway?" Yuffie asked. "I have him running a little errand for me while we were waiting for you to wake up. He should be back pretty soon," said Lucrecia. "Okay," said Yuffie, and took another sip of water. "Why don't you get your body moving? It could help your body start adjusting to the changes better," Lucrecia recommended. "Mm..if you really think it will help, I'll do it," said Yuffie as she set the cup of water down. "But I don't think I'll be getting used to it anytime soon," she added. "I don't expect you to either. But, stuff happens," said Lucrecia, helping Yuffie off the bed. Yuffie makes her way out of the room, still feeling awkward about her enhanced traits. She felt like it made her more fragile rather than stronger. "I can't believe this is all real. I'm really not dreaming," she said to herself as she made her way down the stairs.

She walked outside and witnessed the beautiful orange and pink-colored sky with a bit of some clouds due to the sun setting. Yet even so, the sun felt very warm to Yuffie and it made her feel more calm. She had herself a good, long stretch with a deep breath. "Ahhh~! This feels good," she breathed out. But then her eyes caught sight of a dark figure moving towards her direction from down a small hill. But with her enhanced vision, she could see that it was Vincent, carry a box of what she assumed was Lucrecia's supplies. It wasn't long before Vincent looked up and caught sight of Yuffie standing outside the doorway of 7th Heaven. His eyes had widened, clearly shocked to see her standing there. His eyes had shown brightly as he gazed at her. Yuffie started to form a soft smile and gave him a little wave. "Hi Vinnie," she said. Vincent slowly set the box down next to him, his crimson eyes still on Yuffie. After he stood back up, he began taking slow steps towards Yuffie. Yuffie remained still, watching him step closer and closer to her, up the small hill. The two never took their eyes off of each other with each step he took. Even when he was now in front of her, he didn't stop moving. But landed his forehead on Yuffie's right shoulder, hiding his face. It took Yuffie by surprise, but she didn't budge. "Vincent?" she called him. "Just…. Let me stay like this…for a while," he said. Yuffie smiled understandably and remained still for as long as Vincent needed her to be.

 **A/N:**

Surprise! What did you think? You weren't expecting this to happen were you? I bet you hate Schwartz. But don't worry, it's not the end yet. There's still plenty more story to go. But I promise, no harm will come to Yuffie again. Sorry if I scared you, lol. But do expect a stronger bond between her and Vincent though. Especially you Yuffentine shippers. (Myself included.) Anyways, hope you're still enjoying the story! Thank you for reading, as always! ^-^


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Vincent and Yuffie go on a slow stroll on their way to meet with the gang in the Shera. It was clear they both wanted to say something in regards of what had happened. Although Vincent usually wasn't a conversation starter. So Yuffie had the honor of starting the conversation. "It's unbelieveable. Isn't it?" she asks, not really expecting an answer. Though she didn't get one anyway. Yuffie chuckles half-heartedly. "Of course it is. Who would ever guess something like this was possible. I still can't get used to these enhancements...it really feels like I'm dreaming..," said Yuffie. Vincent remains quiet as they walk. "I really thought..I died," Yuffie whispers, her hands behind her back as she looks down. Her mentioning the word 'died' made Vincent stop. Then Yuffie did the same. Vincent turned to her but Yuffie didn't look up.

"Maybe I really did die...but even so, I'm standing here. Alive," she said. Vincent kept his gaze on hunged head, desperately wanting to see the look on her face. "To think _your_ blood... _your_ DNA...had this kind of power," Yuffie continued. Practically saying Vincent's thoughts out loud, even though they were her own thoughts. "But yet...somehow..I don't mind it," she said, slowly starting to raise her head. "I really don't..mind it at all," she added, her head raising higher. "Do you?" she asks, now looking straight into the deep, crimson eyes she always knew. Vincent connected his eyes with her astonishing silver eyes. Everytime he looked at them, it was like he was forced to remember how it happened all over again. He could never avert back to the time when her eyes were normally light brown. It was like the representation of...change. _Complete_ change. _There's always a point on someone's life that changes everything. Be it good, or bad._

Vincent thought deeply on those words. "There's...no turning back," Vincent finally spoke. Yuffie stepped a bit closer to him. "Do you regret it?" she asked him. Vincent caught her eyes once more. The eyes he could never turn away from. "No," he said, speaking as honest as possible. Yuffie smiled softly. "I'm glad..," she said. For some reason, those words sent a tingling feeling to Vincent's heart. But he couldn't quite understand it. It was an indescribable feeling to him. Was it...relief?

Yuffie smiles at him. But then it fades as she remembers something else. "I'm not really too worried about my powers anymore but…how am I going to tell my father about all this?" Yuffie said with a slight frown. That seemed to have hit Vincent in the head pretty hard. He had completely forgotten about Godo. "I mean..the last time we saw him was when we left Wutai. And the last words we exchanged was an argument on whether I was going or not. Now when I see him again, what am I supposed to say?" said Yuffie. Vincent had nothing to say to that. Yuffie begins walking again. Vincent watches her, then starts to follow. "I can't just go up to him and say 'Hi father! Guess what? I almost died and I'm a Vincent now!' or something like that," said Yuffie, then chuckles at the thought of Godo's reaction to that. Vincent almost winced when she said 'I'm a Vincent'. Yuffie then does a couple little skips, and twirls in Vincent's direction, making a stop to face him, and smiles brightly at him. "But no matter what, we'll get through this together. Right?" she said, as she arced her head to the side. Vincent just stares at her, but slowly nods. Yuffie straightens and shares her bright smile with him once more, then turns back around. "We can't keep everyone waiting. Let's go!" She says and starts to lead the way, which Vincent reluctantly follows.

…

The two didn't even reach the Shera when they met with the gang. Of course, Tifa and Cait Sith rammed into Yuffie with hugs and tears. Everyone else just laughed. Overall, they were glad to see that Yuffie was alive and well. "Good to see ya again, Yuf!" Cid greeted. "Gave us so much of a heart attack! You owe us," Barret joked. Yuffie giggled. Tifa finally lets go of Yuffie and wipes her tears. "How do you feel? Are you sure you're okay?" She asked. "I'm fine! Calm down, haha. Just need some time getting used to the change is all," said Yuffie. It was then Tifa had noticed her eyes. "Your eyes! They're-" Tifa started to say. "I know. I know. They're silver. Weird, right?" Yuffie interrupted. "Extremely!" Cait Sith jumped. "So weird…even I don't understand why that is. Vincent's eye color never changed as far as I know," said Shelke. "Maybe it's a side effect," said Red XIII. "A side effect from _what_ exactly?" said Cid. "Who cares! Yuffie is back, safe and sound. Can't we just be content with _that_?" said Cait Sith. Everyone smiled and chuckled. "Welcome back, Yuffie," said Cloud. "It's good to be back," Yuffie smiled.

"I think this calls for a celebration! What do you say?" Cait Sith asked. Tifa giggled. "I don't think that's a bad idea. It'd be great to loosen up a bit from all this stress," she said. "Yeah! I haven't had any beer in ages!" Cid half complained. Everyone laughed. "Let's head home then. I'll cook diner," said Tifa. 'Home' being 7th Heaven. "Alright! Let's go!" Cait Sith hopped and started dragging Yuffie along the way, with everyone following and shaking their heads.

…

Before you knew it, everyone was a mess. Well..except for Vincent, Cloud, Red XIII, and Shelke. Cid and Barret, like always, were drunk as hell, and laughing away at their own stupidity. "Watch Tifa in the next 20 years. 'Croouudd? Wh-Where's my fists at?'," Cid acted like Tifa was extremely old with a cane, then he and Barret started cracking up hysterically. Tifa gave them a straight face that clearly read 'Are you serious?'. "Aww~! Don't cry Grandmama Tifa. W-We're just trying to- to, WAAHH HAHAHAHAA!" Barret bursts. Tifa got highly annoyed. "Grandma, eh!?" she popped her knuckles. "OR! ORRR, watch this! She did so much damage with her hands, she lost all her muscles, so she got all shriveled up, her own kids had no choice but to call her Grandma!" Cid barely got out without laughing so hard. Barret couldn't hold in his laughter so he ended up spitting out his beer. "I'll show you who'll be shriveled up once I'm done with you two!" Tifa yells, then starts beating them up. Red XIII and Shelke sighs, shaking their heads. "Sometimes I wonder how I ended up with morons like them," said Red. "Tell me about it," said Vincent, who was standing next to him. His back against the wall with his arms crossed, watching Tifa flatten the two drunks within seconds. Yuffie just laughed at them being squashed, practically claiming that's what they get for underestimating a woman.

After Tifa got done flattening them, she looked as if she had just realized something. Which she did. "You know, now that I think about it, why were they talking as if I was married to Cloud with children in the future?" she asked curiously. "I mean, you of all people should know Cloud's not that type of person," Tifa glared at them with her fists on her hips. Barret lie flatly on top of Cid, completely dizzy. Cid barely raised his arm. "Th-that's because he's gonna-," Cid started to say but was stopped by a sharp knife that came flying from Cloud's hand straight to the wall directly next to Cid's ear. His gaze clearly showed death for him if he said another word. Tifa assumed he did that because she was right. But really, Cloud just didn't want them spitting out the secret. "S-Sorry," Cid said groggily. "Now then, let's get you cleaned up," said Tifa, and pulls them up with just one hand. "Look who owes a debt _now_ ," Yuffie teased the two drunk-heads. Everyone but them laughed. Overall, everyone had a good night. They cleaned up all the messes and called it a night. For once, they all got to sleep soundly.

…

The next morning, the team starts discussing how they're going to stop Schwartz this time. Especially since he created BICON and they haven't figured out how to kill them. "This is so damn frustrating! We just keep falling into to square one!" Cid complained. "Well, it's not exactly a bad thing if you look on the bright side. Yes, we may constantly end up back in square one again, but what do we do from there? We take the new knowledge we acquired from our previous failure, make a new attempt, and we leap further than the last time. This is just another one of those times. And who knows, maybe we'll leap far enough we actually _do_ manage to end things," said Tifa. "It's still too much of a hassle and it's tiring and annoying," said Barret. "But at least we have a better idea of what to do, rather than being _clueless_ about everything like we were when we first got involved in all of this. Or would you rather us be that way and just let the bad guys win this war and kill everyone off until they have Lucrecia?" Yuffie chimed in, which shut Cid and Barret up _real_ good. Tifa sighed.

"I say we stick to our last plan," Tifa began. "Uhh..last I recall, that plan led us into a _trap_ ," said Cait Sith. "Not this time. I'm not saying we follow the plan exactly how we set it up. This time, we'll avoid battling the ZICON and the BICON. There's bound to be a BICON or two wherever ZICON are. It's perfectly clear we haven't found a way to defeat the BICON, so it's a waste of time. And energy. Instead, since we don't know _where_ the beasts are coming from, we'll follow them. There's a high chance we'll get to Schwartz's whereabouts if we do that. _Especially_ since they came out of nowhere, he ought to be creating more of them," Tifa proposed. "And that's when we can get revenge on him for hurting..well, practically _killing_ Yuffie!" Cait Sith jumped. "Calm yourself, Cait," said Red XIII. "As much as I'd like to agree with you, Cait, revenge isn't what we're after here. We're to put a stop to his madness altogether, and save lives. One way or another," said Tifa. "I know..," Cait Sith said disappointedly, hanging his head low. "It's okay, Cait! Either way, we're still getting rid of Schwartz!" Yuffie pulls Cait Sith into a tight hug and kisses him on the forehead. "So it's settled then. We locate some BICON, and hope they lead us to Schwartz. If not, we'll be stuck searching for him from scratch," Cloud concluded, which everyone nodded in agreement to.

"But not without me," Gerald suddenly chimed in, catching the surprised attention of the team. "Gerald!" Yuffie called him in surprise. He made his way over to them, equipped with a rifle of his own, and a dagger on the left side of his waist. "If _anyone's_ gonna get rid of Schwartz, it's gonna be me," he claimed. Though Vincent had felt the same, he respected Gerald's will. Since he understood the fact that Gerald was indeed Schwartz's brother. "I'm done sittin' back with my legs up, not doing a damn thing. It's time I got some action rolling. He _is_ my _brother_ after all. Can't let him keep wreaking havoc, and losing himself more and more by the day," said Gerald. Tifa smiled and the team nodded with full understanding. "Welcome aboard then, mate!" said Cid. "Let's go hunt down Schwartz!" Cait Sith pumped his fist in the air. "Right!" the group said in unison.

They make final preparations, bids farewell to Lucrecia, Marlene, and Denzel, then aboard the Shera and take off to the worn-down town where they last met with Schwartz.

 **A/N:**

Whoo! How are my fellow readers doing? What did you think of this chapter? Good? Bad? Both? Who knows. But let me warn you, you're in for a big surprise in the next chapter! Especially my Yuffentine shippers! So bewaarrreee! *^*


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

Or so they thought. The Shera ended up having problems along the way, so the gang had to make a stop at Midgar so Cid could fix it. "Not sure how long this is gonna take. It's pretty bad..man! Of all the times!" he complains. The group exchanges their share of disappointment. Gerald however senses something off about it.

"Well..I guess we can stay here for a night to give him time to repair her," said Tifa. "And let Schwartz get away with who knows what!? No way!" Cait Sith jumped. "Well, what choice do we have? The Shera is our quickest route," said Tifa. "Shit..," Barret said shaking his head. "Can't be helped. The sooner we get through this, the better," said Red XIII. "Yeah..," said Yuffie. "Let's see if we can find a hotel to stay in," Tifa suggested, and the group nodded. Cid got to grapping his tools to make repairs on the Shera. Gerald walks over to him, still with a look of curiosity. "What's _really_ going on?" he asks Cid after the rest of the team had already gone. "Whatever do you mean, mate?" Cid asks, as if he didn't know what he was talking about. "You're hiding something," said Gerald. "That I am. Why do you care?" Cid asks, inspecting the wires. "Just curious. Not gonna tell 'em what you're plannin' if that's what you're worried about. I don't think it's anything bad," said Gerald. "Trust me, it isn't. If anything, it should actually help them out," said Cid. "Help who out exactly?" Gerald asked with a slight frown. "The Spiky-headed Chocobo Attraction and the Smartass Punching Bag," Cid answered. Gerald had to think for a moment. "You mean Cloud and Tifa?" he asked with a deeper frown. "Bingo~," said Cid, dusting off his hands as he stood up. "Heh heh heh! Spiky-headed Chocobo Attraction and the Smartass Punching Bag...good descriptions," Gerald laughed.

Night had fell, and Cid still wasn't done. "Guess we really are staying the night," said Tifa, watching Cid. Barret sighed. "I'm going to bed," he said with a yawn and made his way into the hotel. Tifa soon followed. Everyone else had already gone into their rooms to sleep. Except for Vincent and Yuffie, little did she know.

Vincent is on his way to his room when he notices Yuffie's room door is left wide open. He slowly makes his way over to it and stands in the doorway, where Yuffie is seen leaning out the opened window, watching the sky. "I know you're there, Vinnie," Yuffie says suddenly, which startled Vincent. He then takes a few steps inside the room. "You shouldn't leave the door open," he says. "I know. But I was waiting for you. You can go ahead and close the door," said Yuffie. Vincent does so, then walks up behind her. He couldn't help thinking that she was really alive. His blood had actually saved her, but the consequence was that she had become like him. Immortal. Enhanced.

"Can't sleep?" he asks her. "Yeah," Yuffie replies. "I've been thinking a lot about what happened. I'm really happy about it, but I also feel guilty. Like I shouldn't be happy about it. I feel like you don't like me being like this and you probably regret doing what you did," Yuffie starts. Before Vincent could say anything, Yuffie keeps on talking. "But no matter what though, I'm just content with the idea of staying by your side. I'm glad that I'm still alive, because in truth, I was scared of dying. Scared of death in general, actually. I was scared of dying of old age and not being able to stay with you forever. It made me feel bad thinking how lonely that must be," she said. Vincent had nothing to say. He just stared at the back of her head in the moonlight. "Vincent? Do you remember that night I set up that campfire outside the Shera? And you caught me vomiting blood in the bushes?" she asks. "...Yeah," Vincent replies. "I saw a shooting star that night. After you told me you'd find some kind of cure for me and left. When I saw that shooting star, I made a wish. I wished that I could stay with you, by your side for the rest of my life. Even though I knew it couldn't happen. And yet...," Yuffie's voice starts to break. "It came true anyway," she said. She refused to look at Vincent, because she didn't want him to see her tears. But Vincent saw through it anyway, and yanks her around to face him by the arm, where he could see her tear streaked face. Yuffie looks with a slight smile, then wipes her face. "I just..wanted to thank you. For granting my wish," she said, slowly looking back up at him, into his eyes. _And..because I love you_ , she said to him in her thoughts. As if reading her mind, Vincent slowly plants his hands on her face and pulls her face close to his, and plants his lips on hers.

It took Yuffie by surprise, but she didn't resist. She softly places her hand over his and slowly kisses him back. Their kiss grows deeper and deeper as seconds go by. Their hunger for each other slowly rising. Vincent presses Yuffie against the wall as they continue their kiss. His hands planted on her waist, and Yuffie's arms circling around his neck, tangling her hands in her hair. Then he pulls her away from the wall and they fall onto the bed, still kissing and their breaths growing hot and heavy. They ended up kissing for so long, Yuffie was running out of air, and pushes Vincent by the chest and calls his name through their kiss to stop him. Vincent stops and gazes into her eyes apologetically and starts to feel very ashamed. He tries to get up, but Yuffie quickly wraps her arms around his neck pulling him back close. She looks deeply into his eyes as if pleading him. "Please don't leave me," she whispers. _I love you_ , she says in her thoughts. Once again, as if he read her mind, Vincent wastes not another second and engulfs his mouth over Yuffie's once more. Seconds go by, and their kiss deepens, more heavily and hasty breathing, and slowly stripping off their clothes. Their bodies grow more heated as they do, holding on tightly to each other, not wanting to stop. They soon stop to catch their breaths, and gaze into each other's eyes intimately. Vincent slowly opens Yuffie's legs with his and lowers himself, trying to settle himself over her, not turning his eyes away from hers. Yuffie wraps her arms around Vincent's neck as if to say she's ready. So Vincent pushes himself inside her and Yuffie lets out an aroused moan as her hands move down and plant flatly on his chest. He moves more and more, and with each thrust, Yuffie moans, and Vincent begins to growl hungrily. He starts to get faster and harder, and as he does so, he holds Yuffie's hands above her head, feeling as if he'd never stop.

Their noises start to wake up Barret, Cid, and Tifa, who were in their rooms next to Yuffie's. Cid peeps out of his doorway with a satisfied look. Then Tifa soon after and looks at Cid. Cid looks at her with shock, and then realizes who was in the room. He gives Tifa a sinister look and gives her a double eyebrow raise. He mouths 'You and Cloud in the future. That's how you're gonna start losing your fists'. Which Tifa shoots him a death glare for. Barret soon opens his door and peeks out, and witnesses Cid standing out the doorway with his fists in front of him, moving his bottom back and forth and squinting his eyes with his mouth open. Tifa facepalms herself and blushes, and Barret gives Cid a combination of a disgusted look and look that saw that Cid looked like the craziest person alive. Cid gives Barret a thumbs up, and Tifa turns around to see Barret peeking out his doorway too and gives him an 'Are you nuts!?' look. She looks back at Cid who mouthed 'Vince is _totally_ getting some'. Tifa rolls her eyes and goes back into her room and shuts the door. Cid mouths to Barret 'Admit it, you know she sounds hot' and gives him a double eyebrow raise. Barret does the same with a sinister smile.

Vincent and Yuffie eventually stop with their final, loud groan, as Vincent busts inside Yuffie for the second time that night, and take the chance to catch their breaths and cool off. Cid and Barret had their ears pressed against the door, exchanging approving looks and silent words. They quietly sneak off back into their rooms since Vincent and Yuffie had finished. Vincent and Yuffie lay on the bed next to each other, not turning their gaze away from each other. Yuffie turns on her side and smiles tiredly at him. "Goodnight," she whispers. Vincent stayed with Yuffie in her room the whole night as they slept together.

Yuffie wakes the next morning with Vincent's head lying on her bare chest, sleeping soundly. She smiles and blushes as she remembers what they had done. Vincent soon wakes up and lifts himself off of Yuffie to look at her. "Good morning," Yuffie says sweetly with a sleepy smile. Vincent says nothing and sits up next to her on the bed. Yuffie sits up as well and lies herself against his back. She rests her head on his back with her eyes closed and places her hand on his shoulder. Vincent places his hand over hers on his shoulder and they stay there in that position for a long time. Feeling relaxed and content with each other's presence and warmth. Eventually Tifa knocks on the door and asks if they were awake, startling the two. "Y-Yeah! I'm up! Just give me a minute!" Yuffie answers, then and she and Vincent quickly get dressed. She wonders if they had woken up their friends. "I know Vincent is in there too, so don't worry," said Tifa. "Yeah, lovebirds! You woke us up!" Barret hollered, but then snickers along with Cid. Tifa places her hands on her hips and gives them a serious glare. A blushing Yuffie slowly opens the door and steps out alone. "Where's Vincent?" Tifa asked. "He jumped out the window because he doesn't want you guys bugging him about...well, last night," Yuffie explains embarrassingly. Tifa smiles respectfully. "It's fine," she said.

The team leaves the hotel and runs into Lucrecia on their way out. "Lucrecia!? What are you doing here?" Tifa asks. "I came by to shop for new equipment," Lucrecia responds. "Oh," said Tifa. "I should actually be asking _you_ that. I thought you guys had left," said Lucrecia. "We did, but, the Shera suddenly had some problems, so we had to stop here so it could get repaired," said Tifa. "A big airship like _that_ had some problems?" Lucrecia asked in disbelief. Then it was Tifa who looked the same. "You know, now that you mention it, that _does_ seem weird," she said with a frown. "Who did the repairs?" Lucrecia asked. "Of course, Cid! He's _owns_ the Shera after all," said Tifa, like it was obvious. "Oh..did he say what was wrong with it?" Lucrecia asked. "Now that I think about it, no. He didn't," said Tifa. "Hmm...well, since you guys are still here, whenever you get ready to leave, I'd like to come with you," Lucrecia requested.

"Why?" Barret asked out of the blue. Tifa and Lucrecia turned to the rest of the group who was talking towards them. Except Vincent. He went into hiding in the Shera. "After thinking about it for some time, I just can't shake the will of needing to know how Schwartz is getting Nighthowler Venom. I don't even know where Nighthowlers are often inhabited," said Lucrecia. The group looked at each other. "Besides, you'd probably need a doctor aboard anyway. In case someone gets hurt, _again_ ," she said, looking directly at Yuffie. The team however was looking quite unsure of whether they should let her come along or not. "I mean...we've already got Gerald with us now. Schwartz's main target is Lucrecia..I don't really see a good reason for endangering you like that," said Cait Sith. "Gerald?" Lucrecia questions with a frown. "That, would be me," said Gerald, coming out of hiding. "To whom, do I owe the pleasure?" he asks. "I'm Lucrecia. And you are?" she asks. "Gerald. Schwartz's younger brother. Pleased to meet you," he said. Lucrecia looked at him in shock. "So you must be the _famous Lucrecia_ everyone's making such a fuss about," said Gerald, putting his hands in his pockets. "I didn't know he had a brother," Lucrecia said with a frown, mostly to herself. "Just like I didn't know you're the woman he was so obsessed with. News are news. I have my reasons for coming along, and that's to get rid of him. What's yours?" he states. "You would fight your own brother!?" Lucrecia asks. "Not fight _, kill._ Now answer my question," Gerald demanded. Lucrecia could sense he knew she was hiding something, but she refused to fess up. "I just simply want to know more about these Nighthowlers he's somehow getting," said Lucrecia. "And then what? When you find these Nighthowlers, what are you gonna do? Destroy them?" Gerald tested. Lucrecia said nothing.

"Lay off on her will you," Tifa said to Gerald. "Why? All she's gonna do is hold us back. Especially since she's the target here," said Gerald. Though he was right, the group didn't like how harsh he was being with Lucrecia. "You seem to forget she's a scientist. Now a Doctor. What do you expect from her?" said Red XIII in her defense. "Yeah! It's not like _she's_ the one making those ZICON and whatnots and wreaking havoc," Cait Sith jumped in. "She just wants to help put a stop to it, that's all," said Yuffie. Now it was Gerald who had nothing to say. "Thank you, everyone," said Lucrecia. "We'll let you come on _one_ condition," said Tifa, holding up one finger. "You _have_ to stay in the Shera unless we say otherwise," said Tifa. "You have my word," Lucrecia bowed. Gerald still couldn't shake the feeling Lucrecia was hiding the true reason. Which she actually was. She didn't want to go just to find out more about the Nighthowlers. It was because she wanted to ask Schwartz what he knew about Yuffie's power.

They aboard the Shera and Vincent is surprised to see Lucrecia. "Don't worry about it. We'll explain later," Yuffie tells him before he could say anything. "Alright guys! Time to get rollin'!" said Cid as he gets ready to pilot. "Oh yeah! By the way, Cid! What was wrong with the Shera?" Barret asked, which stopped Cid in his track real quick. Gerald secretly chuckled. Cid looked quite guiltily, which had the group exchanging looks. "Cid?" Cait Sith calls him. Tifa looks up at him with a slight frown. "Don't tell me there was nothing wrong at all!" she said. Cid looks down and rubs the back of his head nervously. "Oh boy..," said Red XIII. Shelke sighed. "That's right..," Cid confessed. "What!?" Cait Sith jumps. "Why would you do that to us, man!?" Barret asked, clearly in shock and pissed. "Because I wanted to give _these two_ some time alone," said Cid, pointing at Tifa and Cloud. "Us!?" they both responded in unison. "But instead, is was _those two_ who took the stage! Keeping us up all night," Cid pointed at Vincent and Yuffie. "Keep talking and that mouth of yours is gone," Vincent threatened with a death glare. Yuffie, however, was blushing.

"Why in the world would Cloud and I need some time alone!? We didn't have a fight or anything!" Tifa asked with her hands on her hips. "Ask Cloud yourself!" Cid retorted. So Tifa turned to Cloud with a look that read 'what is it?'. "Don't worry about it. He's just crazy," said cloud. "Oh quit the act already! I'm tired of holdin' all this shit in for ya! You either tell her yourself, or _I_ will. It's your choice," said Cid. Now Tifa was looking very confused. Cloud sighed. "Can it at least wait until we get rid of Schwartz? We're wasting time here," said Cloud. "Suit yourself," Cid shrugged, then began piloting the Shera. Leaving half the group with confused thoughts.

 **A/N:**

SURPRISE! what did my Yuffentine shippers think? Too much? Anyways, I've got a funeral to attend so don't expect the next chapter until tonight! Sorry! T^T


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:**

Hi guys! Sorry I posted the chapter so late. I didn't expect to be gone so long from the funeral. I had came home so late, and boy was I _exhausted_. I tried working on the chapter this morning and have it posted but I ended up getting busy all day. My sincere apologies! But here it is! Hope you enjoy it, and thank you for waiting!

 **Chapter 16:**

It turned out that it was going to be a very long ride. The town they last saw Schwartz in when he shot Yuffie and took off, was much further than they thought. Red XIII was sleeping soundly with Cait Sith laying against him, snoring away. Shelke and Lucrecia were leaned against each other sleeping as well. Barret was by himself on the floor against the wall snoring as loud as ever. Cid still piloted the Shera while they slept. Cloud stayed up as well, watching the scenery. Tifa was grabbing blankets for all the sleepy-heads. Vincent was looking for Yuffie. "Where's Yuffie?" Vincent asked Tifa. "Oh! she's out back, sleeping on the couch," Tifa answer while covering Cait Sith and Red XIII with small blankets.

So Vincent makes his way out back and eventually finds Yuffie asleep on the couch, as Tifa had said. To Vincent, she looked like a sleeping beauty, rather than a sleeping baby. Vincent walks over to Yuffie and kneels in front of her, getting a closer look at her sleeping facial features. He thought back on the previous night. Remembering her telling him what she wished for. And how Vincent had apparently granted it. "Hmph," Vincent smiles slightly. "Just don't go around calling me a genie," he said to her. He brushes a bit of hair from off of Yuffie's forehead, then leans closer and closer to her, and softly places his lips on hers. Tifa was making her way over to cover Yuffie with a blanket, but stopped when she saw Vincent, stepped back into hiding and peeked at them again. Vincent parts his lips from Yuffie's, and inspects her face one more. "Thanks," he starts to say. "For finding a place in your heart, for a monster like me," he said to Yuffie. Tifa smiles. Cloud came around the corner behind Tifa. Vincent picks up Yuffie bridal style and begins carrying her over to her room. Tifa watches them with a sweet smile, full of wonders.

"Tifa?" Cloud calls her from behind, making her turn to him. After seeing who it was, she smiles. "Hey, Cloud," she says as she turns back around. Cloud steps up behind her to see that she was watching Vincent and Yuffie. "It's really strange," Tifa says out of the blue. Cloud looks at her, wondering what she was talking about. "Who would have ever guessed those two, who are complete polar opposites, would end up together?" Tifa continues. Cloud looks back at the walking Vincent carrying Yuffie in his arms. "But then on the other hand, it's really romantic," said Tifa. Cloud looks back at her. "A love so strong, you do the impossible, and without losing hope, everything turns out alright," said Tifa, referring to how Vincent saved Yuffie's life. Cloud looks down, pondering the meaning of 'love'. Tifa turn around to face him. "Have you ever wondered what love can do to you?" she asked him. Cloud then looked back up at her, straight into her sweet eyes. The eyes that belonged to the person Cloud had first met when they were children. The eyes of the one who knocked some sense into him by simply saying 'dilly dally, shilly shally'. The eyes of the one who was always there for him, no matter what. The eyes, that never changed.

Cloud steps closer and closer to Tifa, still looking into her eyes. "Cloud?" Tifa took a step back, but Cloud just kept getting closer. Cloud finally stops, standing very close to her. His hand on her arm, not being able to turn away from her eyes. "Cloud? Are you alright?" Tifa asked, and there it was. The perfect demonstration of who she was. The proof of her love and care for her friends. For Cloud. Always making sure they were okay. Crying for them when they were down. Correcting their wrongs, pushing them to their limits knowing it was good for them, keeping everyone motivated, holding down the fort, and being like a true mother. But what was a mother without a father? Being the only one to shoulder everyone's burdens and hardships without asking for anything in return. Just wanting to make sure everyone was happy, and safe. But on the other hand, in Cloud's eyes, it was like she was someone people stepped on just to get where they needed to be. All of the pain from it, countless times, she had to deal with on her own, with no complaints. For all of her kindness and hard work, she didn't deserve any of that treatment.

"Cloud?" Tifa calls him, looking worriedly. Cloud slowly moves his hands to her waist, and slowly wraps his arms around her waist, pulling her into a soft hug. Of course, it takes Tifa by great surprise. Cloud had never done such a thing before. Nor did she expect him to ever do so. But here he was, actually doing it. It brought a sweet smile and a soft blush to Tifa's face. She slowly hugs him back and closes her eyes. They stayed like that for who knows how long. Cloud had finally let go, and quickly turned away so Tifa couldn't see his face. But he stopped mid-path. Tifa just stared at the back of his head. " _That's_ , something _your_ love does to me," he said, then walked off. Leaving a shocked Tifa to stand alone in the hallway. But then she smiles with a tint of a blush.

Vincent lays Yuffie carefully on her bed. Though she had already woken up from being carried by Vincent anyway. She smiled up at him sweetly, and places her hand on his cheek. Her eyes practically begging him not to leave. Which Vincent just couldn't resist. He climbs onto the bed on top of her, kissing her as he holds her against him tightly. They kiss and kiss endlessly, being content in each other's grasp. They keep kissing for quite a long time, and keep doing so, until they fall asleep.

...

Morning hits and Cid wakes everyone up through the intercom. "Rise and Shine, Sleeping Beauties! We've arrived at our destination!" Cid said loud and clear through the intercom. He lands the Shera in front of the abandoned town as everyone makes their way up to the front. After getting some stretches and yawns out of their systems, they go over the plan once more. Gerald makes sure his rifle is loaded and has some spare bullets on him, and Lucrecia promises to stay inside the Shera. Though she wasn't really going to.

"Alright! We're off!" said Cid and began leading the way. "Be safe," Shelke bowed to Lucrecia, then followed after them. Lucrecia watched them go until she couldn't see them anymore. Then left the Shera to secretly follow them.

Surprisingly without finding any of the ZICON nor BICON, the team ends up coming across a large and open, arena-like place that was in the shape of a giant circle going 100ft deep. The walls and the top were covered with chain-link fences that went all around the place. But at the bottom of the place though, it was empty. There were 4 sets of large double doors in each direction of the place. The entire thing looked as if it was made out of iron and metal. "Should we go down there?" Cait Sith asked. "I don't know…I have no idea what this place is," said Tifa. "It looks too huge to even pass up airborne. Of all the times I've piloted the Shera, I've never seen this place before," said Cid. "Just like we never seen Schwartz's bases until recently," said Yuffie, as if the reason was obvious. "Tch!" Cid scoffed. "since we've never seen this place before, all the more reason to check it out. Is it not?" said Red XIII. "I don't know..I feel a bit uneasy about it," said Shelke. "Yeah, me too. Who knows what's down there?" said Cait Sith. "For all we know, Schwartz could be in there. This place ain't too far from the town. Where else could he be hidin'?" said Barret.

"Let's cast a vote then. All who agrees with the idea of going down there, raise your hand or paw," said Cloud. Everyone but Tifa, Shelke and Cait Sith did so. "It's decided," said Red XIII. "Aww man," said Cait Sith. "Well, at least we know who to blame if things turn bad," Tifa teased. "Tch!" Barret scoffed. "Let's go," said Cid, and began climbing down using the chain-linked fence. Cait Sith sighed. "Come on. The quicker we finish this, the better," said Red XII, and began making his way downward as well. Everyone else followed soon after. Lucrecia, meanwhile, had gotten a bit lost. But there were no ZICON or BICON around, so she was safe.

One the team made their way down, there were shocked to see that the place was much bigger than they thought. "Wooowww!" Yuffie looked around in awe. "I still can't shake the feeling that's it's too quiet for this to be out here in the middle of nowhere," said Shelke. "For once, I agree," Tifa sighed. The group made their way towards the center, and right when they reached it, a sudden voice boomed loudly from all directions, startling the group. "Greetings, ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to my House of Fun!" Schwartz voiced boomed with an eerie laugh. "So Schwartz _is_ here!" Yuffie said, readying her Shuriken. "But where? I can't tell where his voice is coming from!" said Tifa. "It has to be above," said Red XIII. "Just keep looking," said Cloud. "Ohh ho ho hohh! No need for that. You're in the House of Fun, so be a sweetheart and participate in it!" Schwartz laughed, as all doors from all sides suddenly came open, with ZICON and BICON walking out of each door. "Oh no..," Cait Sith slumped. "Daaamn! He must be going all out this time," said Cid. "He's just _that_ desperate, huh?" Barret spat. "I knew it was too good to be true. No activity from these guys all of a sudden…I should've known!" said Shelke out of frustration. "No use whining about it now. Let's just get this overwith," said Red XIII. "Wait! Don't be too hasty. Let's not fall for his tricks and waste time. What we need to focus on is finding him," said Tifa. "And figure out how to destroy these things. Which, by the way, I don't think Schwartz will confess to," said Yuffie, her hands on her hips. "SCHWARTZ!" Gerald yells. Making everyone completely stop movement.

"That voice..," Schwartz said with a quieter voice. " _Long time no see_ ," said Gerald, placing his rifle over his shoulder. "Gerald!?" said Schwartz, clearly sounding surprised. "Heh heh heh hehh. That's right, brother," said Gerald. "What are you-, oh nevermind. This just makes things easier," said Schwartz, then giggles. "I'll be the one to say that once we bring you down. Show yourself!" Gerald demanded. "Sorry but…unless you've brought me a certain gift, I'm afraid I'm just going to stay back and watch the show," said Schwartz. "If by a 'certain gift' you mean Lucrecia, then yes. We've brought her," said Gerald, which got him a bunch of death glares behind his back. "You have her!? Where!?" Schwartz demanded. "Gerald! What the hell are you doing!?" Barret yells angrily. "What are you thinking!? Is this why you came along with us!?" Tifa said, feeling betrayed. "I knew we shouldn't have let her come with us..," Cait Sith shook his head. Gerald just ignored them.

"Since you want to play and toy around with us like we're just pieces of shit, I'm gonna give you a taste of your own medicine," said Gerald. "Oh? And how do you plan on doing that?" Schwartz asked, clearly interested in what his brother was planning. "Simple. By finishing what you started. In case you forgot, the very person you resurrected is the one who cured the Wutaian Princess of your Nighthowler Venom," Gerald began explaining. "So what! You're just gonna-," Yuffie started to retort, but Vincent stops her. "Wait. I think he's on to something," said Vincent. _If he's planning what I think he is..,_ Vincent thought. "And? Your point is?" Schwartz said, sounding bored. "If Lucrecia had the ability to do that, what do you think she can do with your ZICON/BICON army?" said Gerald. That had Schwartz frozen in his tracks. "Bingo," said Vincent. "Huh? What is doing?" Yuffie asked. "Just watch. And learn," said Vincent, crossing his arms. "I-Impossible! She can't even remember a thing!" Schwartz retorts. "Oh? Last I checked, when we first rescued her and took her home, she got her memories back. _All of it_. Now how long ago do you think it was when we took her from you?" Yuffie smirked. "WHAT!?" Schwartz could be heard knocking something down. As if he jumped out of a chair and accidentally dropped something.

 _He's hiding in some control room. If he keeps this up, Schwartz might end up coming out of hiding on his own, then we'll have him_ , Vincent thought. "Now, before you go and try anymore funny business, just know that I've got a large amount of antidote prepared for your little army," said Gerald. Then pointed his rifle upward, and pulled the trigger. After about a minute, at the top of the HoF, a lot of vehicles with large barrels tied on top surrounded the entire place. "Whoaa! What the- How!?" Cat Sith jumped. "Thank me and Lucrecia later. We wanted this to be a little surprise. Sorry we kept it from you," said Gerald, reloading his gun. _I didn't expect_ _**this**_ , Vincent thought, clearly shocked. "Sweet!" said Cid, looking approving. "Nice one! You're awesome, man!" Barret praised. Tifa giggles. "Who would've thought this man could come up with something like this! I'm very impressed," said Tifa. "Whoo hoo!" Yuffie jumped. "Nice job, Gerald," Cloud nodded. "Now then," Gerald sets his rifle on his shoulder once more. "What's it gonna be, brother?" he said. From above, a large, black window could be seen opening like a lid, and Schwartz was now in plain view. "There he is! Up there!" Yuffie pointed. "Then the doorway directly below should lead to that room he's in," said Shelke. "Aww yeah! Now we've got him!" Cait Sith jumped.

"Not so fast! How do I know this isn't some kind of trap? For all I know, every single one of those barrels could be empty!" said Schwartz. "Ahh, so you want a test! I'd be glad to provide the results," said Gerald, then nods to the people standing next to the vehicles. They nod back, and half climb on top of half the vehicles, then remove the lids to the barrels and lets the antidote pour out on top of all the ZICON and BICON within range. You could hear the loud roars of pain as the antidote works it's magic, and completely dissolves the ZICON and the BICON. Not too far away, Lucrecia had heard the cries and roars of the ZICON and BICON, and began making her way towards the direction of the sound. Schwartz watched in horror as almost half of his minions were incinerated. "NOOO! MY MINIONS!" Schwartz yelled. "Let's try this again. What's it gonna be, Schwartz?" said Gerald.

Schwartz looked highly pissed. "You-..ATTACK!" Schwartz orders, and the ZICON and BICON begin attacking. "Tch! Let's make our way over and through that doorway!" said Gerald. "Not all of us though. It'd be too much of a hassle. Take a couple of us with you, the rest of us can hold our own," said Tifa. "You sure?" Gerald asked. "Yes! Now hurry!" said Tifa, and punched a good few of ZICON away from them. "Vincent! Red! You're with me! You guys up there! Go ahead and pour out the rest!" Gerald ordered, and began running towards the doorway that was directly below Schwartz. Which, Schwartz didn't see. Lucrecia heard more sounds of the ZICON and BICON roaring in pain due to the antidote. She continued to follow the loud noise, careful of not losing her way once again. She knew what was happening, but she had to see it for herself.

Not too long after Yuffie was cured of the Nighthowler Venom, she had met with Gerald, where he explained to her what was going on. She shared with him that the cured Yuffie, and they devised a plan to make as much of the antidote as they could, so they could take out the ZICON. Her and Gerald meeting for the 'first time' was all an act for the group, so they wouldn't suspect what they were doing. But the quarrel they had was real. Lucrecia wasn't supposed to with them after making all of that antidote. Gerald didn't want to put her in any danger, and that was why he was being harsh with her. _Please! Let everyone be alright when I get there_ , Lucrecia thought as she continued to run.

The gang continues to hold off the Nighthowler infested monsters while Gerald, Vincent, and Red XIII make their way upward to find Schwartz. "No no no no NO!" Schwartz pulled on his hair out of anger. "This isn't how things were supposed to be!" He yelled, frustratedly. "Then you shouldn't have set yourself up for it," Gerald said from behind him, right after Vincent broke the door open. "How did you-!?" Schwartz started to say out of shock, but Gerald stopped him by aiming his rifle at him. "This ends _now_ , Schwartz. No more causing all of this trouble just for one simple woman," said Gerald. "Hah! You really think I'd give up so easily?" said Schwartz. Gerald readied his rifle and put his finger over the trigger, shutting Schwartz up fast. "Just keep testing me," Gerald said sternly, taking slow steps closer and closer to Schwartz. Schwartz began stepping back as he held his hands up as if surrendering. "You don't want to do this, do you?" Schwartz asked, like Gerald really wasn't going to shoot him. "You brought this on yourself. Seeing as you won't put a stop to it yourself, _I'm_ gonna have to _force_ you to stop," said Gerald, and stopped walking as soon as his rifle was pressed against the center of Schwartz's chest, as Schwartz stood at the edge of the large window. "Look. All I wanted was for you guys to give Lucrecia back to me. If you look at it the other way, you're the ones who caused me to do all of this," said Schwartz. "I don't recall Lucrecia being a part of the equation from the moment you started creating those dead monsters down there. Lucrecia came afterwards if I remember correctly," said Gerald.

Schwartz turned his head and looked downward to see that all of the ZICON and the BICON, were gone. Schwartz turned his head back to Gerald, and couldn't think of anything else to say. "Face it. It's over," said Gerald. Before Schwartz could say anything, Gerald pulled the trigger. Schwartz froze upon the impact, then slowly fell back, and began falling from out of the room. Gerald watched his older brother fall to the ground, his heart pained over what he had to do.

Lucrecia had finally arrived just in time to see Schwartz fall to the ground with a bullet wound in his chest. "Schwartz," she whispered, then began climbing down the chain-linked fences. The gang began surrounding the fallen Schwartz with looks of surprise and..well..feeling as if justice had been dealt. Vincent jumps down from out of the room and lands next to Yuffie, staring down at Schwartz, who lies on the ground, coughing. Gerald and Red XII begin making their way back downward as well. Schwartz watches the sky as blood begins leaking from his mouth, then he coughs again. "Schwartz," Lucrecia calls, catching the surprised attention of the gang. Schwartz slowly turns his head to the left, where he sees Lucrecia walking over to him. "Lu..Lucre..cia..," he says, then coughs, and holds up his hand as if trying to reach her. The gang takes a few steps back to let Lucrecia through. Gerald and Red XIII make their way over to the group as Lucrecia softly grabs Schwartz's raised hand with both of her hands. "Schwartz..," she calls him again, closing her eyes painfully. "You're such a good man..why do this?" she asked.

Schwartz coughs. "I just…wanted to be with you," he said. His voice sounding very rusty. Lucrecia gets on her knees, and lays Schwartz's head in her lap. The back of his head bled through her skirt. "I..truly loved you…," said Schwartz. "You disappeared…you left me…you got too busy for me…," he continued. Lucrecia closes her eyes once more, listening very carefully to his words. His heart.

"I wanted to…propose to you…when we next met. But…then I heard news of your death..," Schwartz starts coughing again. His breathing could be heard very loud and clear. "It broke my heart…over and over..I asked 'why'…'why did they take you from me…what did I do wrong…to deserve this'….," Schwartz weases, then coughs again. "I didn't know what to do…I wanted you back…to see your smiles and hear your laughters again…I wanted you..to be happy," said Schwartz, as tears began to fall from his face. Lucrecia opens her eyes, a very sad look in them. She softly places her hand on his cheek. "Schwartz..do you remember the first thing I ever said to you? When we first met?" she asked him, brushing his hair softly with her other hand. Schwartz said nothing, but you could tell he was trying to remember. "'You have very beautiful eyes'," she said. Schwartz's eyes widened a bit, remembering her words. "When I saw your eyes, I thought they were the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. Those gorgeous, Emerald Green eyes. The ones that shone so brightly when you smiled. Even though I wasn't able to see you so much anymore, just remembering those eyes was enough to make me smile. To make me forget all that troubled my mind. Remembering those eyes, made me happy," said Lucrecia.

Schwartz then looked very happy, as if he was at peace. "Really?" he asked. Lucrecia nodded. Schwartz gazed deeply into Lucrecia's eyes. He could see that she looked troubled, even behind her small smile. "You look troubled even now…do my eyes..no longer make you happy?" Schwartz asked, feeling disappointed. Lucrecia sighed quietly. "Schwartz…I want to know something," Lucrecia stated. "Whatever you want," said Schwartz. "What do you know about the ones who holds the power of good will by the Star of Lakshmi?" she asked. Schwartz looked thoughtful, and coughed before answering. "To be perfectly honest…not much. Probably like you, I only thought it was a myth. Those born with that kind of power, it was said to be a mere blessing of the Gods. But I never understood what it's true purpose was. Nor what kind of power it was," said Schwartz. "I see…," said Lucrecia. Schwartz coughed harder this time, blood spewing out the side of his mouth. "Heh…looks like it's time for me to go," said Schwartz, looking very saddened. "Schwartz..," Lucrecia looks at him with very deep sorrow. "Don't look at me like that…," said Schwartz. "Schwartz…will you smile for me? One last time?" Lucrecia asks him. "I want to remember those eyes for the rest of my life," she adds. "If…it really makes you happy..I'll do anything," said Schwartz, then gives her the best smile he could manage. "See you…later," he said. Then his body becomes heavy, and he passes away slowly. Lucrecia closes her eyes as a tear fall down her cheek. "Goodbye…Schwartz," she whispers softly. Gerald walks around the two and kneels before them on one knee. He pats Schwartz on the head softly. "So long, big brother," he said, his heart clearly expressing his pain for losing his dear brother.

For once, everyone around had felt bad for Schwartz. It really was saddening to have to go through so much suffering, over a lost love. Work so hard to try to get it back, and in the end, not even achieve it. But it did teach them one very important thing. Love is indeed the most powerful thing alive. It has the ability to make the impossible, possible. Whether it's good, or bad. And there's nothing you can do about it, because there's no escaping love. Love is uncontrollable. As easily as it can make you the happiest person alive, it can destroy you and kill you just as easy. It's no wonder love is so hard to describe.

 **A/N:**

What do you think of Schwartz now? You feel bad for him now, don't you? It's okay, even I cried a bit. And I'm the one writing this! Lol! I'll try to have the next chapter posted tomorrow morning, or in the afternoon! Stay tuned! Cx

P.S. The next chapter is gonna be pretty special. Huehuehuehue! v


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17:**

Everyone makes it back to Edge with a completely different atmosphere. One that told a simple story to all around them. One that simply said they had been through quite a lot. Each with loads of things on their minds. Especially Lucrecia. She really wanted to know more about Yuffie's powers. And the only people who would know about it best were Yuffie's parents.

A week goes by since the return of our heroes, who once again, saved the world. Kinda. Lucrecia decides to meet with Vincent and Yuffie to discuss her thoughts on Yuffie's power. But she had to hold it off due to a certain someone planning a certain surprise.

Tifa gets done with work and makes her way to her room to see Cloud's usual note with a flower on her bed. But this time, the note said 'I'll be with you soon'. Noticing he put 'with you' instead of 'back'. She frowned for a moment, but shrugged it off. She goes to the dresser where she keeps the rest of the flowers she collected from Cloud in a large vase. Only to see that the vase was gone. "Where is-" Tifa stops mid-question with a frown. In place of her vase was another note. She picked it up and read the note.

 ** _"It all started with those eyes."_**

Tifa frowned slightly. "What does that mean?" she asked no one in particular. At the bottom corner of the note, was an arrow pointing towards the edge, indicating to turn it over. Which she did.

 _Go downstairs and check the counter._

Tifa frowned, but did as the note said. On one of the stairs, she spotted a white flower petal just sitting there. She picked it up with a confused look on her face, but continued heading down and into the bar. There was another note that sat on the counter. Tifa walked over to the counter, set the flower, flower petal, and the previous note down on it, and picked up the next note.

 ** _"The eyes that told me a great story over the years."_**

She flipped it over seeing that there was an arrow at the bottom corner.

 _Go to the front door._

She set the note down and headed towards the front door, where there was another note thumb-tacked to the door. There were many white petals on the floor in front of the door as well. She took down the note and read it.

 ** _"A story of one who loved and asked for nothing in return but happiness."_**

Then she turned it over.

 _Go outside to Gerald's stand._

Tifa opened the door and went to find Gerald's stand. The place where she had first met Gerald. Gerald wasn't there, but a note lies on his table. So she picks it up and reads.

 ** _"But also a story, where the one who loved, carried the burdens and suffered other's pain. But never complained."_**

(On the back)

 _Look to your right, and go to it's doorway._

Tifa looked to her right, and spotted the Shera. So Tifa heads to the Shera to find another note on the door.

 ** _"For all the times you never gave up on me. Never left my side. It's time I returned the favor."_**

(On the back)

 _Go to the door that leads to the front of the Shera._

So Tifa walks into the Shera and makes her way to that door. On her way there, there were lots of white flower petals on the ground, as if leading the way. On the door was another note.

 _The password is **"Will you let me return that favor"**._

There was no arrow on the note needing her to flip it over, so Tifa just opens the door and is startled to find Cid standing there. "Oh my god! Cid! You scared me!" Tifa said after she had jumped. Cid chuckled. "What's the password?" he asked. Tifa frowned at him. "Will you let me return that favor?" she said, as if asking if that was correct. Cid stepped aside and held out his arm, indicating Tifa could move forward. So she did and turned the corner to the right to see everyone smiling at her, and Cloud standing at the center with his back facing her. He looked like he was dressed in a black suit. He slowly turns around, holding a bouquet of the very same flowers Tifa had collected from him.

"By doing me the honor, of letting me share my life with you?" he asked her.

Tifa gasped and covered her mouth in shock. It was then, she had realized what all of this was. It brought tears and laughter to Tifa's face. "Oh my god..," she began to laugh and cry. Everyone around began slow clapping, chanting 'Just say yes!'. Tifa and Cloud laughed. Tifa then runs into him, hugging him as tightly as possible. "Yes, Cloud! Yes!" she cried happily. Everyone claps and cheers as she and Cloud finally share a sweet kiss. "Whoo hoo!" Cait Sith jumped. "Finally! It's about time!" Barret chuckled. Yuffie wiped away joyful tears and continued clapping. "Congratulations!" everyone cheered in unison. Tifa and Cloud pressed their heads against each other's, smiling happily with Tifa laughing non-stop.

"Time for the celebration!" Cait Sith jumped happily. "And don't go too crazy this time either," said Red XIII, speaking mostly to Cid and Barret. "Yeah. We wouldn't want our bride to have to smash a couple pillars on her special day, now would we?" Shelke laughed. "P-pillars!?" Cid and Barret said in unison, naturally covering their crotches at the scary thought. Everyone laughed.

...

After everyone celebrated the newly engaged couple, Lucrecia pulls Vincent and Yuffie into her room. "What's up? You seem pretty troubled," said Yuffie as she jumps onto the bed. "I'm guessing it's serious since you're pulling us into hiding," said Vincent, as he leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "In a way yes," said Lucrecia. "Just spit it out. The suspense is killing me," said Yuffie, jumping on the center of the bed in a slow twirl. "Heh! Well if you would sit down, first, then I wouldn't be so distracted to tell you," said Lucrecia. Yuffie scoffs. "You're no fun!" she said, but plops her bottom onto the bed and criss-crosses her legs. "You have my full attention, Ms. Crescent," said Yuffie. Lucrecia chuckles. "Thank you. Now then..lately, I haven't been able to get the research of your powers off of my mind. I was hoping Schwartz would know all about it since he had taken interest in you. That's why I asked him about it before he died. But, I guess he was on the same level I was," said Lucrecia. Yuffie and Vincent exchange a look. "Soo...what are you wanting to do then?" Yuffie asked. "Since it's clear no one but you, Vincent, and your family knows about it, I was hoping you'd grant me permission to speak with your father about it. The more we know how your powers work, the better you learn how to control it. There's no telling when it comes out of your grasp and could possibly cause harm to others. Especially with Vincent's DNA running in your blood, which collides with your powers," said Lucrecia. Yuffie frowned in thought.

"I do see what you mean..but wouldn't we have to know if my powers are even effected by the DNA first?" Yuffie asked. "That's what I thought at first, until I saw your eyes," said Lucrecia. "My eyes?" Yuffie looked confused. "They changed color. Remember? And I don't think just Vincent's DNA alone can do that," said Lucrecia. "I see..," Yuffie looked thoughtful. "So it's not just the matter of understanding her power, it's trying to figure out the possible side effects of the collision. And to make sure it doesn't cause any harm to anyone, especially herself," Vincent concluded. "Yes. Exactly," Lucrecia nodded to Vincent, then turned to Yuffie. "Though nothing of any danger from it has happened yet...that we know of...but I guess it doesn't hurt to be prepared," said Yuffie, mostly to herself. "Of all people on this planet, your parents are the ones who would know the most about your power. Thought it is saddening your mother passed away...which leaves your father as our only hope. Please Yuffie? Will you grant me permission to speak with him, and further research all of this?" Lucrecia asked. Yuffie closed her eyes in thought for a moment, then opened them with a bright smile. "Well, if you think it'll help, then be my guest. I trust you. So do what you think is best. As they say, always follow your Doctor's orders," Yuffie giggled. Lucrecia laughed. "Haha, that's true. Thank you, Yuffie. I owe you a grave debt," she said. "Nahh, no biggie. If anything, my dad is actually the one you need permission from. He's the one being so protective of it," said Yuffie.

"That's why I was hoping you two would come with me. If that's alright with you of course," said Lucrecia. Yuffie looked deep in thought. "I guess I can't hide from him forever..," said Yuffie. "He may not take it well, but in the end, there's nothing he can do about it. He said it himself. There's always a point in someone's life where they change. This is just another one of those times," said Vincent. "Yeah! You're right. That way if he forgets his own words, we can just throw 'em right back in his face!" Yuffie jumps up. "Heh heh! I take it you two will come with me then?" Lucrecia asked in confirmation. "You bet!" Yuffie jumped off the bed. "Just don't expect me to do all the work," Vincent half joked. Yuffie and Lucrecia exchanged a 'typical Vincent' look, then laughed.

So the next morning, with the rest of the gang trying to settle and relax after Schwartz and his minions were finally gone, Vincent, Yuffie, and Lucrecia make their way over to Wutai. Cid was nice enough to let Yuffie pilot the Shera. Of course, not without threatening to kill her if anything happened to Shera.

With many things in mind to discuss with Godo, it would definitely be a _long_ visit.

 **A/N:**

Whoo! What did you think of the engagement? Pretty sweet, right? Maybe a bit much? I know I enjoyed it! I might have the next chapter posted later on today, so keep a lookout! Once again, thank you for reading! Cx


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

They arrive to Wutai and Godo is shocked but very happy to see Yuffie. When he hugs her, he can't help but notice the change in Yuffie's eye color. He was about to ask about it, but Lucrecia interrupts and introduces herself to him. "You must be Yuffie's father. I'm Lucrecia," she said, holding out her hand. Godo is shocked and realizes she was the one the gang was talking about the last time they were there. "Ahh! Yes! I am indeed her father. Very pleased to meet you," said Godo as he takes her hand and shakes it. "What brings you three here?" he asks. The three exchanged looks, then Yuffie steps forward. "We have...very much to discuss. Can we talk in your room?" Yuffie asks. Godo looks concerned for a moment, but okays it. "Very well then," he said. "Thanks," said Yuffie, then the four make their way into the palace and up to Godo's room.

"Would you like some tea?" Godo offers. "No thanks," said Yuffie. "I'm alright, thank you," said Lucrecia. Godo holds out his hand towards the bed and the two chairs at his table. "Please. Have a seat," he said. Yuffie sits on the bed, Lucrecia picks one of the chairs, and Vincent chooses to stand against the wall. Like always. "You really had me worried, Yuffie. Leaving like that and not coming back for so long," Godo shakes his head as he walks back and forth. "I'm sorry...stuff just happened...we've been pretty busy," said Yuffie, looking down. not wanting to look at her father just yet. "I was just...aggravated. I was tired of being treated like I was some helpless child. That's why I had got upset with you," said Yuffie. "And even now, you claim you can handle yourself just fine?" said Godo, with a raised eyebrow. "I wasn't able to handle myself alone before. But now..," Yuffie stopped. "'Now' what? 'Now' you can? If so, do explain how so. I want to see just how strong the heir of Wutai has become for her to say that she's capable on her own," said Godo. Yuffie stayed quiet. "Or does it have something to do with those eyes of yours?" said Godo, walking over to Yuffie. Yuffie finally looks up at him. Godo turns and walks over to his window.

"You know I always have time for my precious daughter. I have all the time in the world. It does seem like you have alot to explain. So take as much time as you need," he said. Yuffie looked back down. "Even after I explain...would you still see me as your daughter? Or would I be something else to you?" Yuffie said to herself, not realizing she said it out loud. Godo turns to her looking confused and concerned. "Yuffie!" Lucrecia gave her the same concerned look. "Now why in the world would I not consider you my daughter?" Godo asks with a very deep frown. Yuffie refuses to look at him. Vincent couldn't even look at Godo. "What happened to you? Really?" Godo asks. "Just...," Yuffie sighs, then looks at Godo. "Promise me you won't hate us," she said. Godo looked even more confused, and looks over at Lucrecia and Vincent, who refused to look at him. Godo slowly turns back to Yuffie. "Now you've got me worried..," he said. "Just promise me! Okay?" Yuffie blurted, which took Godo by surprise. Godo then frowns deep in thought. Then he turns and walks back to his window. "You have my word," he finally said.

Yuffie looks back down, trying to think of how she wanted to start the explanation. They waited a few long minutes before she began. "It started after we left this place. Well..technically it started when I got kidnapped. But for the sake of your understanding, lets start with after we left," Yuffie began. Godo nods in acknowledgement. "Alright. Continue," he said. "Ever since we left, as the days went by, I'd get very sick during the night, and I'd vomit a lot of blood," Yuffie continued. Godo practically winced at what she said. "It got so bad to the point where, I felt sick even in the daylight, I fainted from it," Yuffie goes on. "So, my friends brought me to Lucrecia. Which by the way, we had rescued from Schwartz, and not long after, she got her memories back," Yuffie quickly explained. "I see..," Godo nods. "Anyways, I was brought to Lucrecia in hopes of her helping me. But she couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. So she kept asking questions about what happened to me previously, and she came to conclude that when Schwartz had put me to sleep before he set me in that capsule, he also injected something else in me. Which cause me to get so sick nightly. Much like the ZICON," said Yuffie.

Godo was beginning to take guesses of what Yuffie would say next in his thoughts. "The only person who knew was Schwartz. So some of my friends forced the answer out of him. He said it was Nighthowler venom," said Yuffie. Godo turns to Yuffie with shock. "You mean..he tried to..turn you into a ZICON?" he asked. "Mm..," Yuffie nods. "And…I assume it didn't exactly work, and that's how your eyes became silver?" Godo asks. "No. My eye color came way later. After my friends relayed the message of what it was that I was infected with, Lucrecia was able to make the antidote for it, and cured me with it. But…the reason she was able to save me wasn't just because she knew what was injected inside me," Yuffie carries on, then stops. So Lucrecia decides to take the wheel.

"While she was in a coma, I ran some tests on her body and blood, and compared them with the results of the tests I ran on a ZICON's body part. According to the results from the ZICON, I had concluded that if an organism, such as a human, came in contact with the Nighthowler venom, they would turn into a ZICON within a day. But in our case with Yuffie, if I hadn't cured her, she would've became one after a week or so. Meaning that she was somehow resisting the venom, and I couldn't figure out how. And the only possible factor we could come up with is her powers," Lucrecia explained. Godo frowned in thought. "How do you know about her powers, though?" Godo asked. "Vincent and Yuffie herself told me about how she used it to destroy those ZICON back when they were invading Wutai. This was when I was questioning all that happened to her prior to her being infected with the venom," Lucrecia answered. "I see..," Godo looked thoughtful. Then he begins walking back in forth deep in thought.

"So, to my understanding, my daughter was almost killed by this 'Schwartz' from the Nighthowler Venom that would turn her into a ZICON. But she was able to resist it for a long time, you believe it was her power's doing, but you did manage to make the antidote and cure her completely from it. Correct?" Godo summarized. "Yes," Lucrecia and Yuffie nodded. "And, what does Vincent have anything to do with it? Or is he a part of what you're going to tell me next?" Godo asked. Yuffie, Lucrecia, and Vincent look at each other. "Y-yes," said Yuffie, answering Godo's second question. "Hmmm..," Godo eyes Vincent, then turns and walks back to his window. "You may continue," he said, his hands behind his back. Yuffie takes a deep breath. _Please don't hate Vinnie_ , she thought.

"So, after I was cured and all, we went back after Schwartz. Well…not exactly. We made a plan to try to get rid of all the ZICON first, and then kill Schwartz last. Somehow, Schwartz had found out about the plan, and he used it to bait us into a trap. Se we ended up being ambushed. It turned out that while he did that, he had made BICON. Beasts, instead of zombies. To this point, we still don't know where he managed to find any beasts. Especially of those sizes. They were huge!" Yuffie expressed in a way that showed even she still couldn't believe he managed to create BICON. "BICON?" Godo asked with a frown. "Yeah. They were tough to fight too. They managed to split us up, and we couldn't figure out how to kill them," said Yuffie. "Hmm," Godo's frown deepened. "But Schwartz used that as a distraction for us to…," Yuffie stopped. Godo turned to look at her. She refused to look at him. "Toooo what?" Godo asked. Yuffie took a deep breath once again. "To…shoot me," she said, while looking up at him nervously. Godo's face grew surprised, then furious. "He WHAT!?" he stomped. "Sir," Lucrecia held out her hands to him as if telling him to calm down. Godo didn't budge. "Where?" he said.

Yuffie kept quiet. "Where. Did he. Shoot you, Yuffie?" he asked through his teeth. Yuffie looked back down and slowly raised her hand. "Here," she placed her hand over her stomach. "Here," she said when she sled her hand underneath the right side of her breast. "And here," she said, after sliding her hand over the center of her chest. "Three…..THREE! Three bullets!" Godo threw his hands up in the air. "You just stood there, and let him shoot you THREE times! And you're still-," Godo stops and turns away furiously. Everyone was quiet.

"How?" Godo asked quietly. Yuffie looked up at him. Then he turned to Vincent. "You! Why didn't you do anything to stop him!?" He pointed his finger at him as he walked close. Which made Yuffie stand up and block him. "Don't blame him! It wasn't his fault! It was mine!" she yelled. "Yours?" Godo asked with an eyebrow raised. "Do explain what you mean by that," he said. Yuffie hadn't meant to tell him like that, but now she had no choice. "I…I was protecting him," she said, looking down. "Protecting him? This _indestructible_ creature!? You was _protecting_ HIM!?" Godo asked furiously. "I don't believe you! You're lying! Tell me the truth!" He yelled. "It IS the truth!" Yuffie yelled back. "Unbelievable," Godo flew his arms up and turned and walked away. "You're not even going to ask why?! Or how!?" Yuffie asked. Godo stops, then slowly turns. "Okay then. Why? How?" he said, not really sounding serious. "You don't even care, do you?" Yuffie asked, feeling heartbroken. "I care enough to do what you asked, so, explain. Give me a good reason why I shouldn't be angry right now," said Godo. "Because I _wanted_ to! After he shot me, he was going to shoot Vincent!" said Yuffie. "Then why didn't you let him!? You know he can't die!" Then turned to Vincent. "I asked you to _help_ her! Not _change_ her!" he yelled, then turned back to Yuffie. "Why waste your life on a-..someone like that!?" Godo yelled. Yuffie gasped in shock and clear hurt. "Godo!" Lucrecia called him in disbelief. Then Yuffie grew furious. "Say it!" she yelled at him. "Say what!?" Godo yelled back. "You was just about to call him a _monster_ , weren't you?" Yuffie's face began to turn red. Godo said nothing. "Well then if he's a monster, I am too! Because if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be here! I would be as good as dead!" Yuffie yelled. "What is that supposed to mean!?" Godo yells. "Oh I think you know _exactly_ what I mean. It's the very answer to your question about why my eye color is different. The answer to your question about Vincent having something to do with it. It's because he saved my _life_ with _his blood_!" Yuffie yelled as she took steps closer and closer to Godo as he was forced to step back.

That had shut Godo up real good. "You….you don't mean..," Godo started to say. "Yes! It's exactly what you think it is. His DNA became a part of mine. So much that I've gained all of his super-enhancements. I have become the very creature you accuse _my savior_ to be. A _monster_!" Yuffie yelled. Godo had nothing to say, but to stare at his daughter with shock. "Do you still think he's a monster?" Yuffie asked him. Godo looked at Vincent, then back at Yuffie. Yuffie turned away. "Yes I knew he was unkillable, but who would think of that when there's a deadly weapon aimed him!?" Yuffie yelled. Silence filled the room. "I never asked for that to happen…I didn't want to be the cause of someone getting hurt…I didn't want him to hurt him, whether it would kill him or not. I was already dying, so why should someone else have to take a meaningless bullet for me!?" Yuffie yelled, tears flowing down her cheeks. "You think I asked for this too!? You were just an innocent _human_ girl! _My_ daughter!" Godo yells at her. Yuffie turned back to Godo. Then walked in front of him, glaring into his eyes. "You wanted to know why I protected him. It's because I love him," Yuffie states. "If you can't even accept how things turned out, then you might as well consider our relationship ceased! You say I was _human_? I was _never_ a _human_! Which means, I was _never_ your _daughter_! Do _humans_ have hidden powers like mine? Do _humans_ magically resist a deadly venom such as Nighthowler venom for as long as I could? Do _humans_ have enhanced abilities like mine and Vincent's? NO!" Yuffie yelled.

Godo really had nothing to say this time. "If you really thought I was human all this time, then I truly wasn't the daughter you thought you had. And because of that, now I feel as if I never had a true father! So don't act like you understand me when you don't!" Yuffie yells, then stomps off out of the room. "Yuffie!" Vincent calls after her, with his arm reached out as if to grab her. Lucrecia could only watch her with high sympathy. The place fell completely silent, before Vincent finally spoke. "I don't care how you feel about me, or whatever you think of me as. But what I _do_ care about, is people hurting her physically or mentally, and mistreating her as such. _Especially_ if they're her so-called _family_ ," Vincent spouts coldly at Godo, then leaves the room to find Yuffie. Lucrecia watches him leave, then thinks of her own words to say to Godo.

"I hope you realize that what you just did was _very_ dreadful," she finally spoke. Godo said nothing. He only stared at the ground before him. "Yuffie was afraid of facing you because she feared you'd do something like this," Lucrecia went on. "But she did it anyway. Because she loves you, and acknowledges you as her father," Lucrecia said as she finally looked up at him. Godo turns away and looks out the window, keeping his back facing towards her. "Tell me. What would you have done if it was your wife?" Lucrecia asked, staring at his back. "Just imagine that horrifying situation with Schwartz. Replace Vincent and Yuffie with you and your wife. Say your wife was the one who had gotten shot twice, and you were the one the third bullet was aimed for. Your wife pushes you out of the way and takes the bullet, even though she was already dying from the previous two, and you had no way of saving her. What would you have done?" Lucrecia elaborated, and took a couple steps towards Godo. Godo still said nothing, but it was clear he was thinking about it.

"Yuffie only acted on impulse, and as she said, it was because she loved him. Haven't you ever thought of what love could do to you?" Lucrecia asked, taking a couple more steps closer. Godo still stayed mute. "Vincent _did_ save her life. You can at least be grateful to him for that. Yuffie considered your feelings, and chose to tell you what happened, when she could've just kept quiet about it. Showing that no matter what, she still cares for you. You can at least be grateful for a daughter like that. Why do you think she asked you not to hate us? It's clear _no one_ asked for any of this, but it happened. There's no telling what the future holds for us, you know," she said. Godo was quiet for a moment, then sighed silently. "It's no wonder Vincent fell for you before. But I find it hard to believe that he's now fallen for my own daughter…just what does he see in her that's to his liking?" Godo asks. Lucrecia looks down with a small smirk. "That's something you should be asking Vincent yourself. He is the one who saved your daughter's life, after all," she said. Then she turned away. "Now, I don't mean to make you come across as a bad person. Because you're not. It's your poor judgment that's bad. Your poor judgement, not as a father, but as a person towards others and life itself," she said, then began walking away, but stopped at the doorway to make her final remark. "After all, there's always a point in someone's life where everything changes. You just have to be prepared to accept it," she says, then walks out of the room to find Vincent and Yuffie. Godo widens his eyes at the realizing of her using his own words against him. Then chuckles. "Women..," he said.

 **A/N:**

Wow..relationships are tough, aren't they? But in the end, even with downfalls like these, they always grow stronger. Because like any other relationship, you gotta talk out the misunderstandings and come to agreements so that everything works out. Love is _truly_ the most powerful thing in life. Stay tuned for the next chapter! :D


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19:**

Vincent had found Yuffie balled up halfway down the stairway, sniffing away from her crying. "Yuffie," he kneels in front of her. Yuffie sniffs, then wipes her face. Vincent could hardly stand to see her like that. It practically stabbed him in the heart. Yuffie giggles slightly."you don't need to look at me like that. I'm okay now," she said. Vincent lets her talk. "Don't take what my father said to heart. You're not a monster. You never was. At least, not in my eyes," said Yuffie, putting her legs down in front of her and letting them stretch btween Vincent's. Yuffie takes a breather as if feeling refreshed, and looks up at the sky. "You know, after saying all that to him, I feel as if a huge weight has been lifted off of my chest. I was so scared of what he would do once I told him everything, but now, I'm not afraid anymore. It does make me wonder how my mom ended up with him though," Yuffie laughs as she looks back down at her legs. "Yuffie..," Vincent says quietly. "Just thinking about her more and more...makes me miss my mom," said Yuffie. "Do you miss yours? Or your dad?" Yuffie asks him. Vincent had to think deeply. "I don't know who my mother is," said Vincent. "Oh..I'm sorry," Yuffie looked sympathetic. "But if it helps, I guess I do miss my father sometimes," Vincent confessed. "Really?" Yuffie looks at him. "Vincent nods. Yuffie smiles. "That does help me feel better. "Glad I'm not the only one with these kind of feelings," she said.

Then she stands up and stretches, and walks over to the balcony to her right. Vincent stands and watches her. The sky was beautifully pink and orange since the sun was starting to set. "Do you like watching the sky?" Yuffie asks Vincent. "I've never paid much attention to judge," Vincent said honestly, then walked up next to Yuffie to watch the sun. "Well, I do. For many reasons actually. One being that it calms me down. Another being that it's just simply beautiful. It does help with letting loose what's bothering you. For me, it makes me think of the things that make me the happiest. Like collecting Materia, spending time with our friends, doing silly pranks, and you," Yuffie turns her head to him with a sweet smile. Vincent looks at Yuffie with an almost blank look. Yuffie laughs slightly and turns her gaze back to the sun. "It probably sounds weird when I say it like that but, that's just me being honest. It's really amazing just thinking about it too," said Yuffie.

Vincent looks back at the sun, and smiles just a tiny bit. "I could say the same about you," he said suddenly. Surprising Yuffie, but she smiles with a small blush. Then she giggles happily. "You know, you really know how to make a girl blush," she said with small laughter. "But for me, it also made me really happy. Dear ol' Vinnie finally starts to express his feelings!" Yuffie smiles brightly. Vincent said nothing. Probably because he was embarrassed. Yuffie looks at him again, then hops over to him and plants a quick kiss onto his cheek. Then wraps her arms around his, and leans her cheek onto the top of his arm with a smile. Vincent was taken by surprise and looks down at her. Seeing her sparkling eyes reflect beautifully against the sun. The way her cheeks were puffed up, he could tell she was smiling. "Thanks, Vinnie," she said. Vincent gave off a small smile, then watches the sun along with Yuffie.

Lucrecia soon finds the two watching the sunset, with Yuffie holding onto his arm and resting her head on it. Lucrecia crosses her arms and smiles at the two, glad that they seemed perfectly fine. She slowly walks up to them from behind, staring at the sun. "The perfect scenery for a little romantic mood, isn't it?" she said suddenly, startling the two to turn to her. Yuffie still clung to Vincent's arm though. "Oh, it's you. You scared the life out of me," said Yuffie. Lucrecia laughs. "Sorry about that, I'm just amazed by you two," she said, standing next to Yuffie, watching the sunset. Yuffie smiles and lays her head back on Vincent's arm. "Even I'm amazed by this," she said. Lucrecia chuckles. "Good ol' Vincent has gone quite soft. That's probably why," she said. Vincent stiffened, making her and Yuffie laugh. "Not trying to be the laughing stock here..," said Vincent. "Oh, hush! You know you were just trying to cheer Yuffie up. There's nothing wrong with it," said Lucrecia. Vincent said nothing. "Even if he wasn't, just being near him is enough for me," said Yuffie. "I'll bet it is," said Lucrecia.

The three then quietly gazed at the setting sun for probably 10 minutes or so. "I'm ready to go talk to my father again. I feel bad saying that our relationship should be ceased...," said Yuffie. Vincent and Lucrecia look at her upon her saying that. Then Lucrecia smiles. "I'm sure he feels the same. Especially after I talked some sense into him," she said, turning back to the sun. That had caught Vincent and Yuffie's attention real quick. The two looked at each other, then back at Lucrecia, just as she turns to them. "Besides. I still need his permission to research your powers anyway, right?" she said, then walks back upstairs and heads to Godo's room. Yuffie turns and looks up at Vincent. "Shall we go then?" she asks with a small smile. Her eyes shining brightly. Vincent loved those eyes. No matter what color they were. He nods to her, and she begins dragging him upstairs, all the way to Godo's room.

Godo still stood in front of the window, deep in thought when Lucrecia opened his door and let herself in. "I think it's about time you two worked things out. Don't you agree?" she asked, as Vincent and Yuffie walk in after her, and Godo turns around. "Yuffie..," Godo steps forward. Yuffie also walks closer to him. Then she jumps onto him with a tight hug. "I'm sorry father. I know you meant well," she apologized. Godo hugs her back and smiles warmly. "I'm sorry too. I should've have listened to you," he apologized back. Lucrecia smiles happily at the two. Vincent quietly sighs in relief. "Know this. No matter what, you will _always_ be my daughter. Do you understand?" said Godo. Yuffie looks up at him and nods with a smile. "No matter what, you will _always_ be my father," she said, making him smile.

Then he looks over at Vincent. "I apologize for the way I treated you. You did in fact save my daughter's life. I am forever grateful to you for that," he nodded to him. "Hmph," Vincent looked away. He had already told him he didn't care what he thought of him or how he felt. So he could care less. "Well then, now that that's settled, I'd like to make a request," said Lucrecia, walking over to Yuffie and Godo. "A request you say?" said Godo. "Oh! right," Yuffie said, catching on. Godo looked confused. "It's about Yuffie's powers. I wanted to ask permission to conduct research on what her power is and it's effects. I figured you and her mother would be the ones who'd have the most knowledge on it," said Lucrecia. "I see...and what do you plan on doing with that knowledge?" Godo asked. "Only what's needed. I want to be fully sure that Yuffie is really alright. If it wasn't for the change in eye color, I probably wouldn't be too concerned. Knowing that Vincent's DNA alone can't chance your eye-color, it has to be some kind of side effect from her powers colliding with it. So to make sure there won't be any possible future problems, I ask that you provide me with all you know about her powers," Lucrecia explained.

"Hmm...," Godo looked thoughtful. "I do see what you mean...if would seem helpful and make me feel more assured of my daughter's well-being," said Godo. Lucrecia and Yuffie exchanged a smile of relief. "But..if you're hoping for a full on documentary of what her powers are and where they came from, I'm afraid you're out of luck on that one. I only know so much," said Godo. "What do you mean?" Yuffie asked. "You are correct in guessing that her change in eye color came from her powers," Godo looked at Lucrecia, then at Yuffie. "Because your mother's eyes were also silver. Like yours. We call them the 'Goddess's eyes'," said Godo, bringing a shock to everyone. "I only know so much because of what your mother told me about it. If she wasn't dead, she would be your best bet," said Godo. "Then feel free to give me all you know. It's better than nothing," Lucrecia said confidently. Godo nods, then begins pacing around.

"As you may already know, the power does come from the Star of Lakshmi. Lakshmi is the name of the Goddess who rules all realms of life. Realms such as Heaven, Hell, the Farplane Abyss, and even the Life Stream. She picks and chooses the souls she sees fit to wield a piece of her power. Power that is based on good will. Yuffie just happens to be one of them. And it is indeed rare, because Lakshmi only gives that power to one person per century. Every 100 years, she chooses the next bearer of her power. For your research purposes, I can assure you, her power is completely harmless. In fact, it can't harm humans and innocent creatures at all. It can only protect them. As a last resort. As you've already witnessed. Even with Vincent's DNA fused with hers, it will only continue to do so. Those who bear Lakshmi's power have her silver eyes as proof. And no, the powers aren't given only to women. They're passed on to both genders. Now, you might be wondering since the person is only chosen every 100 years, how did Yuffie get chosen when her mother was only picked recently?" said Godo, which Lucrecia nodded to as confirmation. "That's because of her death," said Godo.

"Her death? But Yuffie had obtained the powers at birth. Making two of the chosen bearers, before her mother passed. How is that possible?" Lucrecia asked. "Who do think the Goddess is? She's the ruler of all realms. That includes the realm of Time. To put it in a way for it to make sense, she practically is Time itself. Knowing how things begin, and how things end. To explain it better, Yuffie was actually the chosen one. Not her mother. But because Yuffie wasn't born yet, she used her mother as a vessel to hold and nourish the powers for Yuffie until her death," said Godo. "So Yuffie's mother was only a temporary placement for Yuffie," Lucrecia concluded. "Exactly," Godo nodded. "But then..how do explain my powers disappearing when my mother died?" Yuffie asked. "That, I assume, would be Lakshmi being in the process of transferring it all to you. But didn't reveal it to you until you matured enough to handle it," said Godo. "So how did that effect my personality change?" Yuffie asked. "That, I believe was of your own accord. You were extremely close with your mother, and watching the horror of the assassin kill her before your very eyes may have shocked you so much, your brain didn't function correctly, and your senses and emotions dropped," said Godo.

"Hmm..," Lucrecia looked thoughtful. "Now, I could be wrong. But I know Lakshmi wouldn't do that to you," said Godo. "Mm," Yuffie nodded. "And that's all I know about this. How it all began, when the Goddess appeared and why she suddenly came up with the idea of doing this kind of thing, I don't know. But I do know for a fact that in all cases, it was done for the good of life itself," said Godo. "This makes me wonder if there's a dark side to this," Lucrecia thought out loud. "A dark side?" Yuffie asked. "Yes. A balance. This Goddess Lakshmi...she seems to be the very representation of light. So where's the dark? What's helping to keep everything in balance?" Lucrecia asks. "I honestly don't know. Like I said, if her mother was still here, we would know," said Godo. "This still doesn't make sense though. How does mother, who didn't even live that long, know so much about all this?" Yuffie asked. Godo frowned, deep in thought. Lucrecia even looked surprised by the question. She hadn't even thought of it. "Come to think of it...she did say she kept having these...dreams," said Godo. "Dreams?" Lucrecia asks. "Yes. She wouldn't exactly tell me how they went, but she kept saying that Lakshmi would be speaking to her through them, and show her visions," said Godo.

Lucrecia and Yuffie exchanged a look. "Do you think maybe Lakshmi was telling her all about this so that she could pass it on to us before she died?" Yuffie asked. "It's a possibility. But for something like that to be done in such a short time...I think she could only fit in as much information as she could. For all we know, after me relaying the rest of this information to you, you may start to have the same dreams, and Lakshmi could explain the rest to you," said Godo. "I see..," Yuffie nods in thought. "So then..it looks like we have nothing to worry about as far as Yuffie being in any danger. But to know the full story on this legacy, we have to let time pass and see what Lakshmi plans for Yuffie in the future," Lucrecia concluded. Godo nods.

Everyone was silent, deep in thought and letting all that was explained sink in. Yuffie sighs. "Man this is tiring..," she said, shaking her head as she places her hands on her hips. Lucrecia chuckles. "Well, it is nighttime. We could always go back home and rest," she said. "True..everyone's probably worried about us anyway since we disappeared without saying anything," said Yuffie. "If they were, they would have called us a long time ago," said Vincent. "Oh yeah, huh," Yuffie cocked her head to the side. "But now that you mention it, if we go back they'll certainly be questioning what we were up to. Are you still wanting to keep this a secret?" Lucrecia asked Godo, which causes him to sigh. "At this point, there's no reason for me to hide it anymore," said Godo. "Though I'd rather it only be the people my daughter trusts that knows about it. If this news spread to the whole planet, who knows how much chaos that would cause?" said Godo. "I see your point. We'll make it so then. We'll make sure that only our friends know the details of this matter," Lucrecia assures. "Thank you," Godo nods. "So if we're done, can we go now? I'm tirreedd," Yuffie stretches, then yawns.

Lucrecia chuckles. "Are you sure you can even pilot Shera if you're so tired?" she asks. "Of course I can! I'm THE Yuffie Kisaragi! Like, the most energetic person in the entire _world_! Hello!" Yuffie waves her arms like crazy. Lucrecia and Godo laughs, causing Yuffie to smile. "Just be careful out there," said Godo. "Pfft! Please! I'm indestructible now. Nothing can stop me!" Yuffie jumps. "Bye-bye!" she waves as she skips out the door. Godo shakes his head. "Typical Yuffie," he said. "Agreed," Lucrecia nods. Then bows to Godo. "I sincerely thank you for your cooperation and trust. I am forever grateful to you for this opportunity," said Lucrecia. "No need to thank me. I'm just doing what I think is best," he said with a smile. Lucrecia smiles back. "Farewell, Mr. Kisaragi," she said. "Farewell, Ms. Crescent. Godspeed to you all," Godo nods. Then Vincent and Lucrecia make their way out of the room and after Yuffie, who was already near the Shera. "How is she so fast?" Lucrecia asks with a curious frown. "It's like she said. She's the most energetic person you'll ever meet. Multiply that with my DNA," Vincent stated. Lucrecia stopped, completely shocked at Vincent's remark. Causing Vincent to form a hidden smirk. Lucrecia chuckles and shakes her head. "You two really do amaze me," she said to herself.

 **A/N:**

My beloved FanFiction is finally coming to a close! Only one chapter remains! Cx


	20. Chapter 20 (Final Chapter)

**Final Chapter:**

Vincent, Yuffie and Lucrecia returned to Edge safely and got their rest. Of course, the next day there were swarmed by the gang questioning what happened. Lucrecia and Yuffie both did the honors of explaining. Which did take quite a long time since it was a lot to explain. But after all that was taken cared of, there was nothing for anyone to worry about. For now.

…

A little over a month went by after the return of the three who went to Wutai. Everything seemed to be at peace once again. The happily engaged Cloud and Tifa had reopened the Strife Delivery Service (SDS). Marlene and Denzel have been asking them non-stop about when the wedding will be. Tifa always answers them with 'Whenever we feel ready'. Which by now, she's had to say it for the 36th time.

Lucrecia, with the help of Gerald, Barret, Cid, and sometimes Red XIII and Cait Sith, managed to build her own little medical center near 7th Heaven. A place for the sick and injured to get healed. Marlene and Denzel of course are still her personal assistants. Lately they've been helping with the advertising since the place was opened just recently. Which by the way, it is simply called 'Medical Center'. Lucrecia didn't feel the need to give it a fancy name. And yes, the little group did have a little debate on what to name the place. They did have fun with it though, despite Lucrecia being the winner.

Shelke had also been doing her share of helping everyone. She does a mixture of everything. From a few deliveries from SDS to lending a hand in the Medical Center to joining Vincent and Yuffie on a few travels. Which by the way, Vincent and Yuffie have been doping for several reasons. Wanting to help those in need and see the beauty of the world were obvious reasons. They also wanted to visit old friends across the world. But most of all, they wanted to find a good place to live. They'll stop by in Edge for a visit once in a while too. So far, they've found a few places they were interested in living. A couple not too far from Wutai, another around Costa De Sol, and they even considered the place where Vincent was found sleeping in that coffin, Shinra Manor in Nibelheim. They would have to buy the place and fix it up. Because, you know, Shinra still exists.

After about a week of making decisions, they decided to go with the last idea. Shinra Manor. Mostly decided by Yuffie since she seemed to really want that place. It was too 'special' to her because it was _that place_ where she first met him. And because she wouldn't stop begging, Vincent finally agrees to it. They return to Edge to tell everyone the news. Some of the gang thought it was weird, Vincent too, (particularly the boys) and the rest (which were practically the women) were very understanding of it and thought it was a great idea. Who would've thought something like that turned into Boys vs. Girls. "Tch! Women. They're all weird," Cid spouts. "Oh? Well perhaps you'd like to become a woman yourself. Only then will you truly understand the mindsets of us women," Lucrecia suavely remarks. "Hell no! I like my manliness thank you!" Cid retorted, and everyone laughed. Vincent and Yuffie decided to stay in town for a week to relax after all the traveling, and properly plan their future. Especially how they're going to raise money to buy Shinra Manor.

Then one morning, a certain ninja was feeling sick again. The kind of sickness you'd call 'morning sickness'. Yuffie had spent the night with Tifa, and Vincent was out running a couple errands with Shelke. After Yuffie vomited, Tifa takes her over to Lucrecia's Medical Center and try to see what was going on. Though Tifa had a feeling about what it was, but she wanted to make sure. "What's wrong?" Lucrecia asks while getting up after Tifa and Yuffie came in. "She woke up and started vomiting," said Tifa, as she set Yuffie down in a nearby chair. "Really? Just out of the blue?" Lucrecia asked as she went over to Yuffie and checked her temperature. "I believe so," said Tifa. "Hmm," Lucrecia continued giving Yuffie a small check-up. "Let's have you lay down on that bed over there," she said. "Okay," Yuffie nodded. "Where's Vincent by the way?" Lucrecia asked while she helped Yuffie over to the bed. "He's busy at the moment," Yuffie answered. "I see," said Lucrecia as she went over to her desk and opened a drawer. Tifa went over to her and whispered something, then Lucrecia nods. Yuffie rubs her stomach, still feeling nauseous. Lucrecia watches he as she grabs a couple tools and runs a scan with her computer.

Meanwhile, Vincent returns from finishing his errands and looks for Yuffie. Cid, who was drinking, notices Vincent looking around. "Whatcha lookin' for?" he asks, then hiccups. Vincent eyes him, then shakes his head. "Have you seen Yuffie?" he asks anyway. "Mmmmm….I think so. This morning. Dunno if it was really her or not but, I definitely saw Tifa rushing someone to the Medical Center," said Cid, then takes another gulp. Vincent frowned slightly. "From here? It wasn't a customer?" he asked. "No, this place wasn't open then," said Cid. _Yuffie?_ Vincent thought, then quickly made his way to the Medical Center.

Lucrecia had finished the testing, and showed the results to Tifa with a big smile on her face. After Tifa saw the results, she then had the same smile, and they looked at a confused Yuffie. "What's so funny?" Yuffie asked. "Nothing's funny. Really. It's just….the reason you're feeling sick," said Lucrecia. Yuffie plopped her head back on the bed and stared at the ceiling in disbelief. "Seriously? The reason I'm sick is enough to make you happy? What reason could that possibly be?" she said, making Tifa and Lucrecia laugh. Vincent had walked into the Medical Center and was about to knock on the door when he heard laughter through the door. "Yuffie, it's because you're pregnant," said Lucrecia. That brought a shock to both Yuffie and Vincent, which Vincent reluctantly opens the door, catching the girls' attention. Vincent's eyes went straight to the shocked Yuffie. Then slowly at Lucrecia. He hardly noticed Tifa.

Awkward silence.

Vincent walks over to Yuffie. The two stare at each other for who knows how long, as if they were talking to each other with their minds. Neither of them paying attention to their surroundings anymore. Yuffie did start to form a smile on her face. "Ahem," Lucrecia get's their attention. "Well then, the news it out. What are you going to do about it?" she asks them. "What do you mean? You think we're just gonna toss this aside!?" Yuffie asked her as if that was the craziest question she'd ever asked. Lucrecia laughs. "No, silly! I mean how do you plan on celebrating?" she corrected herself. Vincent and Yuffie looked at each other like they really didn't know what to do. "Before there can even _be_ a celebration, everyone else has to know about it too! Ohhh this is so exciting! I'm so happy for you two! Congratulations!" Tifa ran over and gave Yuffie a tight hug. Yuffie couldn't help giggling. She was indeed happy about it.

Lucrecia laughs. "Well don't start getting too crazy. Now that it's clear, that means you've got to transition into the nurturing stage and start taking good care of yourself," she said, specifically to Yuffie. "Really? Boy, I don't even know how to start," said Yuffie. "You can start by following your Doctor's orders. Especially since your Doctor has at least had some experience," said Lucrecia. "Oh yeah..," said Yuffie, remembering that Lucrecia had gave birth to Sephiroth. Lucrecia chuckled. "For now, you should be fine," she said. "Okay-," said Yuffie, and Tifa already started blurting out all kinds of ideas.

Before you knew it, everyone was having a party. Everyone had gifts for Vincent and Yuffie. Tifa planned the biggest gift of all though, which, everyone had to pitch in for.

Tifa had overheard their discussion about buying Shinra Manor. "So, I went and talked with the president and asked about the price. He said he'd sell it for 10 million. Though he seems to have the impression that's it's impossible, but it's no biggie!" Tifa began to explain. "No biggie!? _10 million_ is no biggie!?" Yuffie expressed her surprise. "Wait…don't tell me you guys actually _paid_ for it!" Yuffie started to freak out. Everyone just laughed. "Actually, in a way, yes. We did," said Tifa, still laughing. "Oh brother…," Vincent practically facepalmed himself. "Whyyy!? Wait no, HOW!? Actually, answer both!" said Yuffie. "Why? Because we wanted to! How? Well, we just divided up the cost. 1 million per person. Me, Cloud, Cait Sith, Red XIII, Cid, Barret, and Shelke makes 7 million. Lucrecia and Gerald together made the 8th million. But Denzel and Marlene are excluded since they're children. That leaves the remaining 2 million for you two to add in," Tifa explained. "Huh…no wonder you said 'no biggie'..BUT STILL! Man..now we're indebted to every single one of you," Yuffie places her hands on her hips while shaking her head. They all just laugh. "Well then, consider that debt paid by simply accepting our gift and saying 'Thank you'," said Tifa. Yuffie tried not to smile, but she just ended up laughing. "Gosh, we're so lucky to have you guys. Thank you very much!" Yuffie bowed to them. "You're welcome! Congratulations!" Everyone cheered.

A few hours of partying and laughter went by and Yuffie decides to step outside for a nice breather and a good stretch. Vincent soon did the same. He quickly spotted Yuffie standing outside gazing at the full moon, and walked up to her from behind. "Hi Vinnie," Yuffie greeted, after she turned her head to him. "Let's go for a walk," she said, and was already moving. Vincent just stares at her blankly for a moment, then follows. They say nothing as they stroll. Though Yuffie just skips and hums. Then she finally comes to an abrupt stop and spots a high, nearby hill. "Let's go there!" she points and practically runs over there as if to race Vincent there. But Vincent just walks. "Ahh! We can see the sky so much clearer from up here!" she comments in awe. Vincent could tell Yuffie wanted to talk about something, but he waits patiently. Yuffie sighs. "I don't know how to explain it but…I kind of feel overwhelmed," she says. Vincent just stares at her back. Her hands were clasped together behind her as she stared up at the moon.

"Like…in a way, I'm worried but happy at the same time. Just thinking about all this stuff with Lakshmi, and wondering what our future child will be like…you know what I mean?" said Yuffie. Vincent looks down. It was clear he hadn't thought about it as hard as she was. It was true he thought about the future, but not to the extent of having Lakshmi involved. He had almost forgotten about that. Yuffie suddenly giggles. "Tifa was already trying to get me to make a list of names for the baby," she said. _Oh brother…_ , Vincent thought. "Just use what comes to mind," he said. "That's the thing. I can't think of _anything_. I guess you could say I'm not really good at that," Yuffie laughs. _Neither am I_ , Vincent thought. "Well I'm not surprised you aren't either, but still. Either way, this _is_ new to us," said Yuffie, as if she read his mind. Which sort of shocked Vincent at first.

"I just hope nothing bad comes out of all this," said Yuffie. Vincent looks at her from behind, as if he could see her face. "I really want us to have a bright future. Our _child_ to have a bright future," Yuffie looks down at her stomach. "That's why I want to be prepared and help build a good foundation for them to have a good start from," she said. Vincent walks up to her and slowly wraps his arms around her stomach, holding her close to him. It surprised Yuffie at first, but she smiles and places her hands over his arms, as if adding a protective layer over her stomach. "We will. I'll make sure of it. I won't let anything stand in our way," Vincent claimed in the most serious tone he ever had. Yuffie chuckles. "Me too," she said, leaning the back of her head against his chest, still watching the moon and stars. Vincent soon looks up and watches the sky as well. "We both will. This perfect night sky on this perfect day is proof of it," Yuffie remarks. Vincent slowly nods, and they stay in embrace for as long as they felt like it, watching the beautifully lit, night sky as time went on.

 _ **The End.**_

 **A/N:**

Whoo hoo! That was the last chapter! What did you think of the whole story? **Please leave a review and tell me your thoughts!**


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